All Things Come Full Circle
by InuyashaGirl2610
Summary: InuKag,MirSan pairings. R for lang and future lemons. Inukigo goes head to head with a face from the past, Naraku creates a few new incarnations as the final battle grows near, and Kikyou makes an appearance... full summary insideLime in Chapter 6 & 10
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: This is the first and last time I will say this - I do not own or have rights to the characters or story of Inuyasha. The only character I have rights to here is Inukigo, plus a few new ones that will show up later in the fic (but I'm not telling ya about those yet).

Summary: Inukigo goes head to head with a face from the past, Naraku creates a few new incarnations as the final battle grows near, and Kikyou makes an appearance to interfere with the new relationship steadily forming between Inuyasha and Kagome. The past is dredged up, and all things will come full circle.

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Chapter 1**

'_Ah…it's so peaceful._' Inukigo thought to herself as she sighed happily. She was currently lying on her stomach, draped over a tree branch with both legs and one arm dangling lifelessly while her other arm pillowed her head.

While resting in the tree, Inukigo contemplated the past three days. It had only been three days since they had returned to the village, and she had learned a great deal in that short amount of time.

The first thing she had learned, and which was the biggest shock, was that fifty years had indeed passed her by. That fact had been surreal, because while she had been sealed it had felt as though no time had passed what so ever. But when she came face to face with the village miko, well, she had been startled to say the least. When they had entered the hut, the old woman who had been leaning over the fire pit cooking stew had looked up to greet them, and upon seeing her had whispered her name. She had been confused and asked the old woman how she knew her name, and she had been floored when the woman said that she was Kaede, the same Kaede that she had know fifty years ago. Kaede, Kikyou's little squirt of a sister, who had been barely the height of her waist fifty years ago, was now an old woman in her sixties and the village miko, concrete proof that fifty years had passed. She had needed to sit down when that hit her. She had gotten used to it, although she still was not accustomed to calling the woman, who she remembered being a child younger than herself, Kaede-baba.

The next thing she had learned was that Kagome was not from the village, but from an entirely different time. She had thought that those clothes were strange. After they had visited Kaede, Kagome announced that she was going home for three or four days to catch up on 'school work,' whatever the hell that was, and she then witnessed another of her brother and Kagome's arguments as they began to walk through the forest. She had followed out of curiosity, and was confused when they stopped at the dry well that she remembered was called the Bone-Eater's well. When they reached it, Inuyasha told Kagome that she was only allowed to leave for one day, to which Kagome did not agree. She had gotten really pissed, subdued her brother with the 'sit' incantation, and threatened more 'sits' to come if he dared to come and drag her back before three days had passed. She had then jumped down the well. She had rushed over and peered down the well, and oddly enough, Kagome was nowhere in sight. Sango then explained that the well was a portal to Kagome's time, and that only she and Inuyasha could pass through it. She had made a very important observation from that day - never get Kagome pissed off, especially if she has the power to make you eat dirt by simply saying 'osuwari.'

Inukigo's thoughts then strayed back to the night before last, when she and Sango had gone to the hot springs for a bath. While there she had learned quite a bit more than she had expected.

**FLASHBACK**

"Inukigo-chan, you'll be able to tell if that lecher of a monk is anywhere near us right?"

"Hai, Sango. I'll be able to smell him before he gets anywhere near us. Unless he's smart enough to come from downwind, but I highly doubt that."

"Good," Sango replied as she sunk further down into the warm water, "That means I don't have to rush for fear of him sneaking up on us."

"How did you ever manage with the hentai before?" Inukigo asked while laughing slightly.

"Well, either I get Kirara to hold him off, or Kagome-chan happens to be with me. If she is, then Inuyasha makes an extra effort to keep him away."

"I've been meaning to ask you something about Kagome and my brother." Inukigo said.

"Go ahead." 

"What kind of relationship do they have?"

Sango looked at her with a knowing expression on her face.

"You noticed how they act with each other too, ne?"

Inukigo nodded.

"They think of each other as more than just friends, but as for an actual relationship, there isn't one. Not really."

"What do you mean 'not really?'"

"They are both too stubborn to see that the other has feelings for them."

"Ah…I see. I can see Inuyasha being that way, but I didn't picture Kagome to be one not to recognize the way Inuyasha behaves around her."

"Well, they both give each other reasons to doubt one another."

"Honto? Well, start with Kagome."

"Okay. Well, there isn't much really. There are the 'sits' that she gives him, but there is also an ookami youkai named Kouga that comes around a lot proclaimed his love for Kagome-chan and calling her his woman. Inuyasha gets jealous every time he comes around, but I don't really know why. Kagome-chan has never returned Kouga's affections."

Inukigo stared into the water and thought for a moment, contemplating what Sango had told her.

"Well, I don't think that he's really thrown off by the 'sits,' but he does get angry when she uses the rosary," then Inukigo looked Sango in the face, "Sango, how much do you know about canine youkai courting?"

Sango was a bit taken aback that the question had been directed toward her.

"Nothing really. My training didn't focus on that at all. More on strengths and weaknesses, where they live, and some aspects of behaviour, but never courting."

"I guess since you know next to nothing, then Kagome is completely clueless then, ne?"

"Yeah, I guess. What does this have to do with anything?"

"Everything. I'll give you a little explanation of canine youkai courting to you so you understand."

"Okay."

"Alright, there are two phases to courting. The initial courting begins after a male youkai meets a female and checks her scent. From that he decides almost instantly whether or not he wants to court her. Knowing Inuyasha, he probably started to court Kagome a week or two after he met her."

"You mean he's courting her? I never would have guessed it from the way he acts."

"How does he act?"

"Well, for starters, always picking fights with her and forever calling her names."

"You mean when he calls her bitch?" Sango nodded and Inukigo gave a little laugh, "That name is not meant as an insult to Kagome when coming from Inuyasha."

"It's not?"

"No, inu youkai males refer to their female as their bitch. Since Inuyasha is half inu youkai, him referring to Kagome as a bitch is the same as a term of endearment. The fighting is for two reasons as far as I can tell. One is that my brother is an idiot when it comes to showing his emotions so he covers it up by being gruff, and the other, well, is that Kagome's scent changes slightly when she gets angry."

"Really? Changes how?"

"Inuyasha kinda gets turned on by it." Inukigo replied quickly.

"Oh…" Sango said, sporting a slight blush.

"Don't dare tell anyone that I told you that. If Inuyasha finds out that noticed it he'll be so embarrassed that he'll probably hide for days, and if he finds out I told anyone else he'll probably kill me."

"Don't worry, I won't say a thing."

"Good. Now, the initial courting consists of a few things. It involves the male protecting and providing for the female, putting his scent on the female, and it's a claim to tell other males to back off. It eventually leads to the whole name-calling thing too. The dedication that the male puts into this phase of the courting determines whether or not the female will see him as an acceptable mate. After this goes on for awhile, the length of time varies, the male will finally ask the female to become his mate, and if she accepts he marks her with a physical claim. Sort of like an engagement in human terms."

"Mark how?"

"It's a bite mark that's placed on the left shoulder," Inukigo replied, pointing to the juncture of her neck and left shoulder to indicate where the mark would be, "It marks the end of the initial courting. I'm actually surprised that Inuyasha hasn't marked her. A year is a pretty long time for it to go on. The courting after the marking is usually what takes longer. That's when the male and female are supposed to get to know one another. He's gone on into that phase without marking her. He did the same thing with Kikyou, but the reason that he didn't mark her was because she wouldn't let him. Something must be making him hold off on asking Kagome," Inukigo went deep into thought, placing her finger on her chin. After a few moments she spoke up, "Sango, when this Kouga guy comes around, how does he act around Kagome and Inuyasha, other than what you've already told me?"

"Well, he's always grabbing onto her hands or hugging her. And he insults Inuyasha and picks fights with him."

"Does Kagome openly refuse his affections?"

"No. She doesn't like it, but she grins and bears it for the sake of not hurting his feelings. She also keeps Inuyasha from beating Kouga up."

"Ah…so that's the problem."

"It is?"

"Yup. This ookami knows that Inuyasha has a claim on Kagome and is courting her. He's trying to challenge it. When a challenge occurs the female is supposed to let the males sort it out and not interfere. If Kagome doesn't reject Kouga, and keeps Inuyasha from defending his claim, then Inuyasha sees it as her considering to take Kouga's claim and drop his. I know that my brother wouldn't handle that type of rejection well, so he's probably afraid to ask her to become his mate."

"So, Kagome-chan is throwing Inuyasha off by not directly refusing Kouga's advances and not letting him fight? But she really doesn't have any feelings for Kouga other than friendship. She's never given him any reasons to think that she wants his claim."

"In the world of canine youkai courting, females need to be very direct when dealing with males. By not forcefully telling Kouga 'back off, I don't want you,' she's making both Kouga and Inuyasha think that she's considering it."

"I think I understand now."

"That's good. There's a bit more to it, but I'll wait until Kagome comes back for that. I need to have a long discussion about this with her so the next time that ookami comes around she can tell him to piss off. Hopefully then things will be straightened out between her and my brother."

"That would fix that problem, but I don't think that it's the biggest reason that Inuyasha hasn't asked her."

"Why? Is there something else going on?"

"Well, yes. This is much worse though. Every time a certain someone happens to come by, Inuyasha rushes off without really giving Kagome-chan a second thought."

"Certain someone?"

"Kikyou."

At that name, Inukigo's blood ran cold.

"B-but, Kikyou's dead. I was there. I saw her die."

"She did die. But Kagome-chan explained to me that Kikyou was brought back to life. Well, sort of brought back to life. Her body is an imitation, and she only has a small part of her soul, which she stole from Kagome-chan."

"Stole from Kagome?"

"Hai, Kagome-chan is the reincarnation of Kikyou."

"Well, that's not something that I was expecting. Although I did notice a resemblance when I first saw Kagome."

"It makes her so sad when he goes off like that. She has told me that she does love him, and that makes it very hard when Inuyasha runs off to see an un-dead miko and leaves her behind. She sometimes fears that he will not come back."

'_So, Kagome does love him._' "Why is that?"

"Kagome-chan told me that once, before I joined them, Kikyou attempted to drag Inuyasha to hell with her. She fears that that is still Kikyou's goal. Inuyasha has also promised Kikyou that he will protect her, out of the guilt that he feels for her death. He acts as though he is still very much in love with Kikyou."

"Kami, I knew that my brother was dumb, but I never imagined that he was this big of an idiot. I'm going to have to talk to him about this later, when an opportunity presents itself."

"Kagome-chan won't appreciate you doing that. She just wants Inuyasha to be happy, even if it isn't her that he's happy with."

"I don't care. I'll be talking to him as his sister. I have to do something to keep him from completely ruining his life. But please don't tell Kagome what I plan to do. I don't want to have her trying to put one of those enchanted rosaries around my neck in an attempt to stop me."

Sango laughed at the frightened look on her friends face.

"Don't worry, I won't tell her. I've been telling her to have that talk with him for months and she won't listen to me. I hope that you can get through to him."

"So do I."

**END FLASHBACK**

Inukigo returned to her senses when she realized that she was growling and that she was subconsciously digging her claws into the tree branch that she was lying on.

Kikyou. That bitch of a miko was still 'alive' and was after her brother's life. And what made it worse was that Inuyasha still seemed to carry some kind of feeling for her. She would have to ask him about it to find out exactly what. She also couldn't understand why he would run off on the female he was courting for someone who was dead.

'_Forever the indecisive one. Kami, why is my brother such an idiot?_'

Inukigo let out a tired sigh. She would figure this out. There was no way that she was going to let her brother completely ruin his chances at a happy life. She wasn't really sure what her brother was thinking, the opportunity to talk to him about it hadn't presented itself yet, but she had to make Inuyasha realize just what he was doing. She didn't think that Kagome was going to put up with this kind of behaviour forever.

Speaking of Kagome, wasn't she supposed to come back today? It had been three days, and judging from how Inuyasha had been sulking since she had left, she figured it wouldn't be long before her friend from the future was dragged back through the well by her impatient brother. She was hoping that it would't be to hard to get Kagome away from her brother before they left on another shard hunt so she could talk about the courting issue. If not, they might end up running into that ookami that Sango had been telling her about, and then she would get to see the results of the problem first hand.

"Ooi! Inukigo!!"

"Huh?" Inukigo was brought completely out her thoughts by a small voice and looked down to see a small figure with a big fluffy tail run towards the tree she was resting in.

"Konnichiwa, Shippou!" she yelled out before the kit quickly climbed up the tree and settled on her back. "Done annoying my brother already?"

"Yeah, he got boring after awhile, so I went to play with some of the kids in the village."

'_So, they're not scared of you and let you play with them, even though you're a youkai. Must be because you're so cute._'

"Besides, he just went to get Kagome."

'_Figures._' "About how long does it take for him to bring her back Shippou?"

"Sometimes it only takes him a few hours, but other times he'll stay all night and the next day."

"I see." Inukigo replied as she laid her head back on her arm.

"Ne, Inukigo…"

"Nani, Shippou?"

"Why do you spend so much time out here all by yourself?"

Inukigo lifted her head up again so she could look at Shippou over her shoulder.

"I'm not really used to being around a lot of people. It's too noisy. Besides, the villagers don't really like me, and I was getting tired of the way they were looking at me."

"Oh." Shippou said quietly. He knew what Inukigo meant, and he knew that the villagers didn't really like hanyous.

"It's no big deal though. I'm used to those kind of looks. I just leave when I've had enough of them. Besides, I like it out here. I can watch out for the village, and it's peaceful, so I'm not really complaining."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Oh yeah, Sango sent me to tell you that she had some lunch made and ask if you wanted any."

"Hmm…I think I will, Shippou," Inukigo said as she slowly stood up on the branch and stretched, "I've been out here for a few hours now, I think it's time to go back for awhile. yawn Ready Shippou?"

"Yup!" came a reply from her back.

"Okay, let's go then."

And with that, Inukigo grabbed the Touitsaiga that had been propped up by the base of the branch, and jumped from the tree and then took off running towards the village to the small hut where her companions were currently residing.

Meanwhile…

"Wha?! She's not here?!"

"No, Inuyasha. I'm sorry, she's still at school. You're welcome to wait here for her if you like."

sigh "I guess."

"Well, I have to go out and run some errands. Souta is still at school too, and Ji-chan is visiting another shrine, so you have the house to yourself. Go ahead and make yourself at home while you wait for Kagome. She shouldn't be more than a few hours."

"Kay."

Waving goodbye, Mrs. Higurashi walked out the door.

"So, I have the house to myself?" Inuyasha said out loud to himself.

After ten minutes of wandering around, and finding nothing that interested him, Inuyasha trudged up the stairs and made his way to Kagome's room. He opened the door, then shut it behind him as he walked in. Upon entering the room Inuyasha walked to the bed, sat down, and inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of Kagome's room. As he exhaled he flopped back onto the bed, resting his head on the pillow and then putting one arm over his head while the other rested on his stomach. Closing his eyes, he began to relax.

'_Kagome's scent is so much stronger here then it is anywhere else in the house. I guess that's why I like it in here so much. Her scent makes me feel so calm, I find myself missing the comfort I get from it when she's gone. How in the world did I keep myself sane before I met her?_'

With those thoughts in mind, the hanyou drifted off into a deep, peaceful sleep that only the warmth of Kagome's scent could bring him.

A few hours later…

"I can't believe them! They never give up. How many times do I have to tell them, 'I don't like Houjou-kun, and I don't want to go out with him'? sigh I'm starting to think that Ayumi-chan is the only one of the three of them that has any sense." Kagome huffed as she slid the front door open. "Tadaima!"

Silence.

"Hmm…I guess no one's home. Oh well, might as well get ready to go back before Inuyasha comes to drag me back there." '_Why can't he have some patience. He knows that I'll always come back._'

When Kagome opened the door to her bedroom she threw her book bag on the floor, then jumped and nearly screamed when she saw Inuyasha sprawled out on her bed on his back.

'_So, he already came to drag me back._' Kagome thought angrily. She was about to go up to him and give him a very rude awakening, until she saw the peaceful, contented look on his face. '_Wow, he must really be asleep if he didn't hear me when I called out downstairs or when I came in here. I wonder how long he's been there. I think I'll leave him alone, he never sleeps well in his time so I'll let him sleep as much as he wants while he's here._'

With one last look at the sleeping hanyou, Kagome moved to her closet and tried to pull out her backpack as quietly as she could. Unfortunately, the backpack decided to pull down some clothes along with it, and they hit the floor rather noisily. Kagome turned to see if the sound had disturbed the sleeping Inuyasha, and sure enough, his ears had begun to twitch slightly, proof that he was indeed about to wake up. Kagome sighed quietly and then walked over to kneel beside her bed as Inuyasha woke up.

His eyes cracked open then he blinked them lazily to clear out the haze of sleep. He then yawned widely and stretched, raising his arms above his head and arching his back. A quiet giggle drew his attention to the edge of the bed where Kagome was resting her head on her arms. She smiled at him, and he froze in his position lying on the bed.

"Have a nice nap?" she asked him, still smiling.

Not yet broken out of his stupor from Kagome's face being so close to his, all Inuyasha could do in reply was nod dumbly. '_She's so close. All I have to do is lean over a little bit and I can mar…no no no! Don't think about that now_!!'

"How long have you been asleep?"

Having been asked a question that required actual words for an answer forced Inuyasha to sit up and fight the slight blush that was threatening to show on his face as a result of his thoughts. If Kagome had noticed his predicament then she wasn't letting on.

"I don't know. When I got here your Okaa-san said you wouldn't be home for a few hours and then she left to 'run some errands' or something. I went to sleep not long after she left."

"You've been asleep for awhile then. Sorry for waking you up. You looked like you were having a good nap so I was going to let you sleep while I packed my backpack."

"It's ok. I don't need to get a lot of sleep anyways."

"Maybe not, but it's still nice to get some actual sleep once in a while isn't it? I know that you get enough while we're travelling, but you're always alert and watching out for youkai attacks, so you don't sleep very well."

Inuyasha turned to look at her, wondering when she figured him out so well. Kagome looked like she was thinking something over in her mind - she wasn't looking at him and she was chewing on her bottom lip. At that moment he thought she looked very cute. '_Cute? Where'd that come from? I never use the word cute. But…that's what she is._'

"Ne, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha shook his head to clear his thoughts when he heard her say his name.

"Nani?"

"How about we make an arrangement?" she asked, looking up into his eyes.

"What kind of arrangement?"

"Whenever I come home for a few days, you come and spend the nights here."

Inuyasha just stared at her wide eyed for a few moments. '_She actually wants me over here with her? I thought that she was happy to get away from me for a few days when she came home. Heh, guess I was wrong._'

"Inuyasha?"

"Huh? Nani?"

"Well, do you like that arrangement?"

"Keh. Sure, whatever." Inuyasha replied, trying to sound indifferent, but a small smile crept onto his face.

Kagome saw it and smiled back. '_Maybe…maybe this way, with just the two of us spending time together without the others and no one around that could use his feelings against him, I can get him to open up more to me. And maybe I'll be able to find the courage to tell him how I feel about him._'

"Good. Now, I've got to finish packing my stuff." Kagome said, pulling herself up off of the floor.

"Tadaima!" came a call from downstairs.

Kagome ran to the door, opened it and stuck her head out.

"Mama!! What are you making for dinner?!"

"I was going to make rice and curry, is that okay?!"

Kagome looked at Inuyasha, the scared look on his face telling her that he had heard they were having curry. She laughed to herself remembering what had happened the last time her mother had fed him curry. She then stuck her head back out the door to answer.

"That's fine Mama! But could you make some ramen for Inuyasha please?!"

"Sure Kagome!"

Kagome shut the door then looked to Inuyasha, seeing him relax visibly after hearing that he wasn't having the dreaded curry.

"You didn't think I was going to make you eat it did you? I know that you don't like spicy food."

"Keh! Could've fooled me. You've made spicy stuff for me to eat plenty of times before."

"Hey! I haven't done that in a long time. Besides, the food was only spicy to YOU. I kept forgetting that your senses are more heightened than mine. I am sorry for doing that you know."

"Yeah, yeah. Well, it's no big deal anyways."

Kagome smiled to herself and shook her head, then turned to pick up her backpack.

"Whatever you say. Now, I have to start packing my bag. You can stay there, or you can wander around, or you can help me. What do you want to do?"

"Keh. I'll help you. That way you'll be done so we can get going right after we eat. What do you want me to do?"

"Can you run downstairs and ask Mama for the instant food that I take with me?"

"Sure."

And as fast as you could blink he was up off the bed and out the door.

"Geeze, you're in a hurry." Kagome said dryly. She then smiled and went back to packing her clothes in her backpack while waiting for her companion to return.

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HaHa! There's chapter 1! Not much to it. I just wanted to get the story started. Next chapter should be up shortly, I hope. Until then, ja ne!! 


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Gods, Kagome," Inuyasha sighed as he lifted her up out of the well, "what in the world did you pack in this thing?" he asked, motioning to the oversized yellow backpack he was carrying.

"Don't complain Inuyasha," Kagome replied as she began to walk away from the well, "You were the one who got all that instant food from Mama for me to pack. You took over half of the supplies I had at home! I'm sure you stuffed over fifty packs of ramen in there, I didn't have room for much else and had to bring another bag for all of my things. What in the world are we supposed to do with all that ramen?"

"Eat it? We have Inukigo with us now, and she can eat just as much as I can."

"She wasn't eating much before."

"She was just being self-conscious because she didn't know you or the others. Then she got that hole in her stomach, so that slowed her down a bit. She's fully healed now, Sango and Kaede-baba have had their hands full cooking since you left."

Kagome giggled at the newfound information.

"I suppose they would, having to cook for two hanyous instead of just one. They must be tired of making food by now."

"They haven't complained about it yet, so I guess they don't mind it too much."

"I guess, so how has Inukigo been doing since I left? Other then helping you eat Kaede-bachan out of house and home."

Inuyasha gave a 'humph' but answered her anyway.

"She's been doing okay, I guess."

"What do you mean, 'I guess'?"

"The villagers are acting exactly they way she thought they would."

"Oh. Is it really bad?"

"It depends on how you look at it. They haven't physically done anything to her, or even said anything about her being here, but you can tell that they don't approve of it by the way they look at her. It's like they're disgusted with her."

"But, you're a hanyou and they don't look at you like that."

"Not anymore they don't. They used to, before I started to protect the village. I can tell that they still kinda think that way about me, but they don't show it anymore. The only reason I can think of for them to be that way around her is that they see her as one demon too many. They're fine with me and Shippou because we've been here so long, but I guess they didn't want to see another demon, let alone a hanyou, brought back into their village. She's been spending most of her time by herself in the forest at the edge of the village so she doesn't feel like she's bothering anyone."

"Poor Inukigo. They shouldn't make her feel that way. She hasn't done anything to them."

"Doesn't matter. She's a hanyou, same as I am. We've dealt with people like that all our lives, most of them worse. We're used to the looks, among other things, so it's no big deal." Inuyasha said roughly.

"You shouldn't have had to get used to the looks, or anything else like that," Kagome said, looking up into his eyes, "Just because you're a hanyou, that doesn't mean that you're beneath anyone else. You are just as good as anyone else, so no one has the right to make you feel like anything less."

Inuyasha froze in mid-step and stared back at her in awe.

"Kagome…"

"I think you're perfect the way you are Inuyasha, as a hanyou. No one should make you feel that you aren't just because of what you are."

At that moment he looked at her with so much thankfulness and admiration that Kagome was surprised that she hadn't been knocked over from the force of his gaze.

"A-arigatou, Kagome."

Kagome was surprised by the shakiness in his voice, but when she saw the vulnerable look on his face she decided that she wouldn't make a big deal out of it. Instead, she grabbed his hand, lacing her fingers in his, and leaned into his arm.

"Douitashimashite, Inuyasha." she replied, smiling up at him.

He had been a little shocked by the sudden close contact between himself and Kagome, but when he saw that smile, all insecurities he had went flying out the window and he smiled back at her.

Hand in hand, they continued to walk through the forest towards the village.

Jump back to a few hours before, when Inuyasha was just falling asleep in Kagome's room, except this time in the Sengoku Jidai.

"Arigatou, Sango. That was great!" Inukigo exclaimed as she plopped down on her back on the floor of Kaede's hut.

"Wait till Kagome-chan cooks for you. She's better at it than me." Sango replied as she put away the last of the bowls they had used for their meal.

Inukigo, Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara were all presently occupying Kaede's hut, the miko having gone to a neighbouring village to help the healers there deal with a small outbreak of a disease.

"They should be back soon right?" Inukigo asked.

"Inuyasha will probably bring Kagome-sama back some time this evening. If not, they won't be back until late afternoon tomorrow. Kagome-sama told me that Inuyasha enjoys her mother's cooking, so he usually stays there for at least one meal." Miroku replied.

"My brother and his food. He's still the same as he's always been. Although, I'm not one to pass up a good meal either, so I suppose I can't say I blame him."

"Speaking of Inuyasha," Sango piped up, "have you spoken to him yet about what we talked about, Inukigo-chan."

"Spoken to Inuyasha about what?" Miroku asked, leaning in from his position by the wall with interest.

"Butt out monk. It's none of your business, so stop being so nosey." She then turned back to Sango, "No, I haven't had the chance to talk to him yet."

Miroku feigned a hurt look and put his hand to his heart.

"You wound me Inukigo. I am merely showing my concern for our other hanyou companion. May I ask why it is that Sango knows of this talk you must have with Inuyasha and I do not?"

"For your information, Sango knows because I had to ask her about some things first. You don't because you're a lecher and your perverted mind would most likely misinterpret the discussion that I need to have with my brother."

"I'm sure that if you explained it to me fully that wouldn't be a problem Inukigo." Miroku said and he got up and moved closer to the two women.

"Don't touch me Miroku," Inukigo threatened, "I warned you before, don't make me hurt you."

Miroku stopped and held his hands up defensively as he shuffled a few steps to the side and sat down . He remembered that deadly glare she had given him when he had first touched her and wasn't about to find out if what Inuyasha had said about her being serious was true.

"Hai, hai. Now will you let me know what's going on?"

Inukigo sighed. She wasn't really sure if it would be a good idea to tell Miroku about the situation between her brother and Kagome. If he started thinking perverted thoughts and took it upon himself to talk to Inuyasha he could very well make matters worse. On the other hand, he was a man, so maybe he would be able to talk to Inuyasha about some things that she didn't know anything about. She decided that he would probably be able to help. '_He may be a lecher, but he can be serious when he needs to be._'

"I need to talk to Inuyasha about his 'relationship' with Kagome."

"Ah…I see. Go on."

"He is courting her, but hasn't marked her yet. I need to find out exactly what is making him hold off on that. Sango also told me that Kikyou is 'alive' and that Inuyasha runs off to see her repeatedly. I want to know what he actually feels for her now."

"I was wondering how long it would take for you to pick up on the courting problem." Miroku said as he propped his head up with his hand.

"You know about youkai courting?" Inukigo asked disbelievingly.

Miroku nodded. "It took me awhile to pick up on it, I was with them for a few weeks before I noticed it. But when I look back on it, he was courting her before I met them. When I first encountered them Inuyasha became very defensive about Kagome around me."

"You touched her didn't you." Inukigo said, giving him a deadpan look.

"Hai, and I asked her to bear my child too, but that's behind us now." Miroku replied nervously.

Inukigo just stared at him, then sighed and shook her head.

"Do you know why he hasn't marked her?"

"There are a few reasons as far as I can tell. There's Kouga, did Sango tell you about him?" Inukigo nodded and he continued, "And then there's his relationship with Kikyou. I don't really know what he feels for her. I'm not sure that he himself knows. He either still loves her, or he feels a great deal of guilt towards her death and is confusing that feeling with love. I can not say anything for certain, because it is something that he will not discuss with me. He might talk to you, since you are his sister. I truly hope that he does."

"He has never been very open with his emotions, not even with me, although I don't have to fight with him as much to get him to talk. I should be able to get him to say something to me." Inukigo replied, then smirked, "You're a lot smarter than you look Miroku."

It was now Miroku's turn to give Inukigo a deadpan stare.

"I'll choose to take that as a compliment. You truly are his twin, of that there is no doubt in my mind."

"Why, thank you." Inukigo replied smartly.

"I'll have to agree with Houshi-sama on that Inukigo-chan. Your mannerisms are very similar to Inuyasha's." Sango said.

"Yeah, I know. I think that it maybe runs in our family. Sesshomaru is like it too, although he almost sounds polite when he's being rude. I'm not sure if oyaji was like that, I never really knew what he was like."

"Inukigo-chan, if you don't mind me asking," Sango said, "when Miroku compared you to Sesshomaru a couple of days ago, why did you get so upset?"

Inukigo's face hardened as she averted her gaze and then rolled over to lay on her stomach.

"Something happened a very long time ago. Gomen, but it's not really something I like to talk about."

Sango looked at Miroku with concern, but he gave her a look that said that she should probably drop it for now.

"That's ok Inukigo-chan. You don't need to talk about it if you don't really want to."

Inukigo nodded, but still had a distant look on her face. An uncomfortable silence was heavy in the air, and Inukigo began toying with the sleeve of her kimono when she got an idea of how to change the subject.

"Ne, Sango?"

Sango started at the sound of Inukigo's voice.

"Nani, Inukigo-chan?"

"Do you have anything that would be able to stitch fire rat fur?"

"I think so, why?"

Inukigo sat up with a smile on her face, then using her claws cut the seem that held the sleeve of her kimono to her shoulder. Sango looked surprised, while Miroku looked excited, praying that she would pull off more than her sleeves.

"I was getting bored with this kimono. I think it's time for a little change." Inukigo answered as she went about cutting off the other sleeve.

Now a few hours later, where I left off with Inuyasha and Kagome.

"So what do you think, Sango? Does it look okay?" Inukigo asked as she turned in a circle.

"I think it looks great Inukigo-chan. Looks like it will allow for a lot more mobility than it did before." Sango replied.

"I think it looks good too Inukigo." Shippou said looking up at her.

"Arigatou, Shippou," she replied with a smile, then turned back to Sango, "That's what I was hoping for. The long sleeves got in the way sometimes when I was fighting, but this is much better."

"I bet you'll be able to show us how good you can beat Inuyasha up now, right Inukigo." Shippou said enthusiastically.

Inukigo laughed at the young kit. "You really want to see me beat him up don't you?" Shippou nodded, and she chuckled, "I'll see what I can do about getting him to agree to a sparring match, just for you. How does that sound?"

"Great!"

Inukigo couldn't help but keep smiling at the kit. Her ears twitched and she turned to the doorway.

"Inuyasha and Kagome are coming," her ears twitched again, "and they aren't fighting. Wow."

As soon as she had said that, Shippou had jumped up and run off, screaming 'Kagome!' at the top of his lungs. A thud was heard, which sounded like one body colliding with another, then an 'oomph' as someone had the wind knocked out of them, then…

"Ooi runt! Stop doin' that. One of these days you're gonna hurt her!"

"Put me down you jerk! Kagome!!"

"Inuyasha, put him down. He didn't hurt me."

"Keh!"

Inukigo couldn't help but chuckle. They sounded like they were a family. She was brought out of her thoughts when her brother, Kagome, and Shippou came through the door of the hut.

"You really have to stop jumping on people runt. You're getting to big for that…" Inuyasha stopped at the sight of his sister.

"Yo." Inukigo replied calmly.

"What did you do to your clothes?" Inuyasha asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I was bored, so I decided to alter my kimono a bit. Why, is there something wrong with it?"

"Iie. It's just that I've only been gone for a few hours and I come back to find I have different looking sister. It looks fine."

"I think it looks great Inukigo-chan!" Kagome said as she motioned for her friend to turn around so she could get a better look at her.

After Inukigo had cut off the sleeves of her kimono, she repaired the seam so that it would not rip further. Instead of giving up the protection that the sleeves had given her arms, she had made the sleeves into tight, fingerless gloves that reached her elbows. To top it all off, she had taken a strip of left over material and wound it around her hair, tying it up in a high pony tail. Although tied back, her hair was still very long, now falling to just below her buttocks instead of the backs of her knees.

"It didn't take you long to make those changes." Inuyasha said.

"Nope, Sango helped me. Although I kinda gave them a shock when I started ripping off the sleeves," she giggled slightly at the memory, "Miroku looked like he was gonna faint when he thought I was pulling off my clothes."

Inuyasha growled at the thought of the monk eyeing his sister.

"Where was the lecher while you were working on the kimono? You obviously didn't stitch it while still wearing it."

"He was right here and I gave him a little show."

"NANI!!"

"I'm joking Inuyasha. Sango knocked him out and dragged him to the village and told some girls to keep him busy."

"That reminds me, I should go get Houshi-sama and save those poor girls." Sango said as she stood up and moved towards the door.

"I don't know Sango, I think you might end up saving Miroku from the girls. I think I just heard a slap. He might have groped one of them a few too many times." Inukigo said.

"sigh You might be right Inukigo-chan. Baka houshi." Sango mumbled as she exited the hut with Kirara at her heels.

Inukigo looked towards the door for a few moments before turning back to Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippou.

"She's in love with him, isn't she." she said, more statement than a question.

Kagome giggled slightly while Inuyasha just looked uninterested.

"Yeah, they haven't said anything to each other, but Miroku-sama did ask her to live with him after we beat Naraku, and she accepted. It's pretty obvious that they love each other."

'_I know another couple who are just as obvious._' Inukigo thought as she regarded her brother and Kagome. After entering the hut they had sat down next to the fire, side by side, and were rather close. She had never seen her brother in such close proximity to someone before. He had never even stayed that close to Kikyou for more than a few moments. '_He's very serious about her. More so than he ever was about Kikyou._' That reminded Inukigo about the discussions that she needed to have with both of them very soon.

"So, what direction will we be heading out in when we leave tomorrow Inuyasha?" Kagome asked.

"West. There were a few rumours about some abnormally strong youkai in that direction. They might have Shikon shards."

Inukigo tensed when she hear which way they would be heading. Inuyasha was the only one who noticed. He knew what was wrong so he didn't draw attention to it.

'_She's worried about running into Sesshomaru. I really hope that we don't for her sake. It would bring up things that she hasn't gotten over yet._'

"You think that it might have some connection to Naraku?" Kagome asked.

Inuyasha shrugged.

"It's possible. If it is him I hope that the coward shows his face so I can get a good shot at him."

Kagome nodded in agreement, then noticed that Inukigo was being very quiet.

"Hey, Inukigo-chan? Daijoubou ka?"

Inukigo started when she heard Kagome speak to her.

"Oh, I'm fine Kagome. I was just thinking about something that's all." Inukigo replied. She suddenly felt very uncomfortable cooped up in the small hut and felt she had to get out. She quickly got to her feet and made for the door, stopping and turning slightly as she reached it. "I think I need to get some fresh air. I've been in here all afternoon. You'll know where to find me if you need to, Inuyasha?" Inuyasha nodded. "I'll be back in a while." And with that she dashed off out the door.

Kagome turned to Inuyasha with a concerned look on her face.

"What was that about?"

"It's not really something you need to concern yourself with Kagome. It isn't really any of your business."

"But I'm her friend and she's upset. I want to know what's wrong. Inuyasha, please?"

Inuyasha looked like he was debating whether or not he should tell her, and Kagome noticed that he looked slightly uncomfortable.

"You're worried about her too," Kagome stated, and Inuyasha nodded, "What made her so upset?"

"It's a touchy subject for the both of us, although I've gotten over it. I don't think that she wants it brought up yet."

"I'm not going to start using it against either of you, if that's what you're thinking."

"No, I know you wouldn't do that."

"Well then, you know that you can trust me with this. What about our conversation got to her?"

"sigh When she heard we were heading west."

"What's to the west that would have her so upset?"

"Sesshomaru."

"Sesshomaru?" Kagome questioned and Inuyasha nodded solemnly. "Whatever it is has to do with you too right?"

"Yeah, but I…Kagome please don't make me bring up my past." Inuyasha said quietly.

Kagome was shocked by the look on his face. It was the same one he had gotten when they were walking through the forest. He had even said please. '_He said that he's gotten over whatever is affecting Inukigo-chan. He's lying._'

"It's okay Inuyasha," Kagome said laying a hand on his shoulder, which caused him to look over at her, "You don't have to tell me right now. But whenever you do want to I'm here for you. You know that right?"

"Yeah, I know." Inuyasha replied. '_You're always here for me Kagome._'

"So you're sure that Inukigo-chan will be alright?"

"Yeah, she'll be fine in a little while. She just needs some time to herself. It's better that she deal with this now than deal with it after we leave."

"Yeah, I guess you're right." '_What could have happened between the two of you and Sesshomaru? Why won't you tell me? Is it really that painful? Oh, Inuyasha, I hope we don't run into him on this trip. Seeing him now could end up being more than either you or Inukigo-chan can bare._'

"Damn it! Damn IT! DAMN IT!" Inukigo swore as she ran through the forest. She was far from the village, further than she normally went when she had wanted to be alone over the past few days. She knew that Inuyasha would be pissed if he came looking for her and she wasn't where she said she'd be, but at the moment she didn't really give a damn. She had needed to clear her head, and at the moment running as fast her body would permit was one of the few things that would have some effect. That, accompanied with the extremely loud cursing and the destruction of almost everything in her path forced her to get as far away from the village as her conscience would allow.

"DAMN IT! Of **_all _**the places we could **_possibly _**go, we just **_had _**to be heading for the fucking Western Territories. DAMN IT ALL TO HELL!" she screamed as another unfortunate tree fell at the hands of her claws.

She had been gone for a few hours, and the night was now pitch black, not that it affected her any. She could see perfectly well in the dark.

'_Aniue! C'mon! You said you'd play with me if I was good while you were away. I want you to show me how to fight like you do. Please, Aniue?_'

Inukigo stopped and shook her head to rid herself of the unwanted memories

"Kuso. Kuso! KUSO!"

"You know, talking to yourself can be considered as a sign of insanity."

Inukigo whirled around and snarled at the figure behind her.

"Shut up, Inuyasha! What do you think you're doing sneaking up on me anyway?!"

"It wasn't very hard. You're not paying attention to your surroundings. Over your cursing and the falling trees, you wouldn't hear a fifty foot oni until it stepped on ya," his tone then grew more serious, "You aren't where you said you'd be."

Inukigo snorted as she turned her back to him again.

"Keh! Like I give a damn. You found me didn't you?"

Inuyasha ignored the tone she was using with him. He knew why she was so upset. The possibility of meeting up with Sesshomaru always did this to her.

"Yeah, that wasn't too hard either, even though you were downwind. All I had to do was follow the trail of destruction, and I could hear you long before I could see you. Although, I don't need to worry about any youkai coming after you. Your scent and aura scared them all shitless."

Inukigo smirked half heartedly.

"Maybe, but that didn't save the bear youkai and the boar youkai that were too slow to get out of my way."

Inuyasha gave his own smirk at seeing his sister starting to calm down, but he knew that it wouldn't last long. She was still pissed - he could smell the anger coming off of her in waves and her youki was flaring madly. '_Good thing she has Touitsaiga with her, or her demon blood would have taken over long ago._' Well, he'd just have to fix that.

"You should stop picking on the poor defenceless trees and the weak little demons sis." Inuyasha said cockily as he crouched into a fighting stance.

"Hmm?" Inukigo turned to see what her brother was getting at, and her eyes widened a fraction when she saw that he was ready to pounce on her. "You wanna spar?" she asked curiously.

"Yup. You're pissed off, and I want it out of your system before we leave tomorrow. At the rate you're goin' that'll take you all night, and then you'll be bitchy tomorrow cause you didn't get enough sleep. What faster way to work it off then by fighting someone who can fight back?"

"You're on," Inukigo said as she lowered into a crouch herself, "You sure you wanna do this?" she asked arrogantly.

"Keh! C'mon so I can kick your ass!" Inuyasha replied with a smirk.

"You asked for it."

They stood still for a moment regarded each other, then somewhere in the forest there was a resonating crack, one of the trees that Inukigo had only partially knocked down getting ready to fall the rest of the way over, and the two hanyous lunged at each other in a blur of red and white.

They started off fairly evenly matched, neither really getting a good hit in, which was greatly due to the fact that Inukigo had been running through the forest for hours and was already a little tired. They kept a fairly good rhythm going while they fought - charge, punch, dodge, kick, block, grab, throw, and then starting all over again from the beginning. It went on like that for quite some time, neither was taking any serious hits, until Inuyasha got sloppy, putting too much force behind his punch so that when Inukigo moved to the side he stumbled on ahead and gave her the perfect opportunity to dropkick him in the back. He was eating dirt faster than Kagome would have been able to say 'osuwari.' They stayed in that position for awhile catching their breath - Inuyasha face first on the ground cursing while Inukigo sat beside him with her right leg still laying across his back.

"You…fucked up…Inuyasha," Inukigo said, "What…did I tell you…about fighting…gracefully?"

Inuyasha lifted his face from the ground and glared back at her.

"I still say…that it's a…load of bullshit." he replied haughtily.

"Suit yourself," she answered, pulling her leg back so he could sit up, "Had enough?"

"Keh! Yeah right!" Inuyasha said getting to his feet, "You've still got some anger in you, so it's time for round two," he added as he pulled Tessaiga from its sheath and transformed it, "Draw your sword. I'm showing you how to use it."

Inukigo looked up at him, then down to the sword at her hip, then back up at him again.

"Do I have to?" she whined.

"Yes, damn it! Now get up and stop acting like a pup."

"Fine," she sighed as she got to her feet. She drew her sword and it stayed untransformed, "Okay, how do I get it like that." she asked, pointing at the Tessaiga.

"Concentrate on using it to protect yourself and those around you, and the sword will transform." Inuyasha replied smartly as he brought the Tessaiga to rest on his shoulder.

'_Cocky bastard. If you weren't my brother I'd smack you so hard…_' she stopped her train of thought. She wasn't exactly thinking about protecting anything at the moment. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, concentrating solely on using the sword for the protection of herself and others. It was quiet for a few moments before the sword pulsed in Inukigo's hand and her eyes shot open. '_What the hell was that?_' She stared at the Touitsaiga curiously and then before her eyes the sword transformed into a nearly exact replica of the Tessaiga, the only difference being the slightly more slender blade.

"Woah…" Inukigo exclaimed.

"It'll transform faster with practice. You won't need to concentrate so hard once you get the hang of it," Inukigo nodded to acknowledge that she heard him, "I guess I should show you how to fight with the sword before I tell you how to use the 'Kaze no Kizu', otherwise you'd probably let it loose without watching where you're aiming it."

Inukigo stared at Inuyasha angrily.

"Ooi! I'm not stupid you know. I can use the sword, I'm just not very good at it," she said as she forcefully brought the sword down to the ground off to her side to give some emphasis. As soon as the sword touched the earth, the 'Kaze no Kizu' shot out across the ground and through the forest, tearing up everything in its path.

Both hanyous looked on, Inukigo looking nervous while Inuyasha looked annoyed.

"You were saying?" Inuyasha said flatly.

"Heh heh, umm…oops?" replied sheepishly, one hand scratching the back of her neck.

"Yeah, whatever," Inuyasha replied, holding up his sword, "Get ready, I have a feeling that this is gonna take awhile."

A few hours later, just outside the village, two figures could been seen coming through the forest, one carrying the other.

After the accidental 'Kaze no Kizu', Inuyasha had made Inukigo learn how to fight with her sword the hard way - by coming at her head on and making her defend herself with nothing but her sword. To say he had tired her out was a huge understatement. By the time they were finished Inukigo was barely conscious, which was why he was now carrying her back to Kaede's hut on his back. She appeared to be asleep, with her head laying comfortably on his shoulder and her arms draped around his neck. At some point the tie had come loose from her hair, and it now flowed around them in the slight breeze.

"So," Inuyasha asked, knowing his sister was still awake, albeit barely, "did I manage to get all that pissiness worked out of your system?"

Inukigo gave a soft chuckle, to drained to do much else.

"Hai, Inuyasha, along with every bit of energy that I had in my system. You better not get mad at me tomorrow if I complain about being tired, cause it's all your fault."

"Okay, I won't," Inuyasha said as he smiled slightly. His expression then turned serious as he turned he head to watch his sister's face, "You're not gonna act up like this again while we're travelling are you?"

Inukigo opened her eyes slightly so she could look back at her brother since she could feel his gaze on her. He could see the exhaustion in her half lidded eyes and knew she was close to falling asleep.

"I don't know. I'll try not to, but I can't make any promises."

"That's alright. I know it still bothers you." Inuyasha replied, focusing ahead of him again.

"It still bothers you too, you just handle it better than I do." Inukigo said crankily.

Inuyasha chuckled.

"Yeah, but I've kicked his ass a few times over the past year so that helped a bit. He's one arm short now too."

Inukigo's eyes opened a little wider.

"You cut off his arm?!"

"Yup. Did it while he was in his demon form too." he said proudly.

"Inuyasha, if I wasn't so tired I'd pat you on the back and shake your hand."

"Really? I'm surprised that you're not a little mad at me for doing it."

"Inuyasha, you know it's not like that. Not anymore anyway." Inukigo said as she closed her eyes.

"Yeah, I know. Sorry," Inuyasha said sincerely. There was a pause before he spoke again, "I can't promise that we won't run into Sesshomaru on this trip sis."

"I know. It's okay. Can't really avoid him forever."

"I'll still try to avoid him. Who knows. He might be at the castle instead of wandering around so we won't have to worry about him."

"Thanks, nii-chan," Inukigo said softly as she nuzzled his neck and rubbed her cheek against his. It was a blatant display of affection, reserved only for close family members and mates, something that she used to do quite often. '_Something else that I've missed in the year I spent without her._' he thought as he bumped his cheek gently back against hers to return the gesture. She sighed happily and laid her head back down on his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it." he replied quietly, but she didn't answer him. Her soft, even breathing told him that she had fallen asleep and he smiled slightly. He could now see Kaede's hut, where his friends were located. He looked up into the sky with the intention of trying to judge the time by the position of the moon. '_Shit,_' he cursed to himself, '_It'll be a full moon in a few days. Inukigo will have her human night while we're travelling. She's not gonna like that._' After discovering that little bit of information he went about his original task and determined that it was some time after midnight. He had told the others not to wait for them to come back, because he figured they would be late, but he didn't think they would be this long. '_Knowing Kagome she's still awake and worrying about us even though I told her not too._'

But you like it when she worries.

Inuyasha didn't argue with the voice in his head. He did like the feeling that he got when he knew that she worried for him. It showed that she cared about him.

He was at Kaede's hut now, and when he pulled back the reed covering that served as a door sure enough, there was Kagome sitting next to the fire in her 'pajamas' while the rest of his friends slept in various locations across the hut. She didn't notice them at first because she was busy reading one of her books, but she turned when she heard the covering fall back into place. She became alarmed when she saw Inuyasha carrying an unconscious Inukigo on his back.

"What happened?" she asked worriedly.

Unable to put his finger to his mouth and tell her 'shh' because he was still holding up his sister, he mouthed 'be quiet' to her so she wouldn't accidentally wake their friends and Inukigo. He then set about scanning the hut for an appropriate place to put his sister. Kagome realized what he was doing, went to retrieve a pillow and blanket, then laid the pillow on the floor. Inuyasha crouched in front of the pillow, then carefully removed his arms from her legs and her arms from his neck. Kagome carefully lowered Inukigo onto the pillow then covered her with the blanket. Inuyasha was very surprised that she hadn't woken up. When Inukigo was settled Kagome asked Inuyasha her question again, this time in a more hushed voice.

"What happened Inuyasha? Why did you have to carry her back?"

"She's just tired. I found her running through the forest. She was pretty mad so I decided she needed to let off some steam. We spared for awhile, then I taught her how to fight with her sword and use the 'Kaze no Kizu'. By that time she was so tired she couldn't even sit up. She'll be fine once she wakes up."

"I was wondering what took the two of you so long."

"Bitch, I told you not to worry and go on to sleep. You better not complain to me tomorrow that you're tired."

"I won't. It was my choice to stay up and wait for you. I'll live with it," Kagome replied, then turned to look at Inukigo, "So you two were fighting. Shippou-chan will be sorry that he missed it."

"Keh! He would have been disappointed. She was already a little tired when I found her, so she didn't fight as well as she normally does. And besides, if I'm the one that had to carry her back, do you really think that she kicked my ass?"

Kagome giggled as she made her way over to her sleeping bag and crawled in.

"I guess you're right. Well, oyasumi Inuyasha." Kagome said sleepily as she rolled over onto her side.

"Oyasumi, Kagome." Inuyasha replied. He then got up and moved to sit against the wall by the door so he could watch over all his friends while they slept. After determining that there was no danger he allowed himself to doze off and join his companions in sleep.

* * *

There's chapter two. Hmm…I expected some reviews. Oh well. I realized that not everyone knows the few Japanese words that I sometimes use in my writing. I tend to forget. So, from now on, I'll have a word list at the end of every chapter. 

Arigatou - thank you

Douitashimashite - you're welcome

Kuso - shit

Aniue - respectful term for older brother

Youkai - demon

Nii-chan (Onii-chan) - big brother

Kaze no Kizu - wound of wind (or wind scar, as it's known in the American version)

Iie - no

Hai - yes

Ooi - hey

Nani - what

Oyasumi - good night

If I missed one or more, let me know.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

In the darkened room of a castle there sat a lone figure, or at least he seemed to be alone. The dark haired man began to speak, and if not for the reply of the woman hidden in the shadows, one would have thought he was speaking to himself.

"Do you know what you must do?"

"Hai, Naraku-sama."

Naraku gave a sadistic smirk, which made the room that much colder.

"Good, they will be arriving at the planned location within the next day. You should make your way there now, Koorimizu, so that you are prepared for their arrival."

"As you wish, Naraku-sama." the woman replied as she turned to exit the room.

"Oh, and Koorimizu," Naraku called after her, causing her to stop, "Do not return here until you complete your job."

"I understand." was all she said, and then she was gone.

Naraku smirked as he stood and walked to the only window in the room.

'_How will you fare against my newest incarnation, Inuyasha? How will you react, when your miko is attacked and you have to sit by and watch her die?_'

"Inuyasha, can we stop here for the night?" Kagome asked.

"No!"

"C'mon Inuyasha! It's almost dark anyway, and we just passed a hot spring. It's the perfect place to stop for the night."

"Inuyasha, we might as well stop now, we're not gonna get much further now anyway. And Kagome's right, it will be getting dark soon." Inukigo stated, giving him meaningful look.

The look she gave confused him for a second before he caught on. '_Oh yeah. How did I forget about that?_'

"Keh! Fine, whatever." Inuyasha replied grumpily as he plopped down at the base of a tree. He didn't really mind stopping, he just didn't like giving in so easily.

"Great!" Kagome exclaimed, "Sango-chan, Inukigo-chan, how about the three of us go to the hot spring while the boys set up camp."

"I think that's a great idea Kagome-chan." Sango replied. Inukigo didn't say anything.

"Inukigo-chan, do you want to come with me and Sango-chan?" Kagome asked.

Inukigo looked to Kagome and Sango, then back to her brother still leaned against the tree.

"No, not right now. I'll join you later if you're still there."

"Okay, we'll see you later then." Kagome replied as she and Sango grabbed her bathing supplies and left for the hot spring.

The spring was a short walk away, and Kagome and Sango made it there in just a few minutes. When they got there they immediately checked it out. The water temperature was perfect, not to hot. It was fairly large, almost the size of a small pond. It was shallow at one end, with flat rocks perfect for sitting on, and deep enough in the other to swim in. Once both girls had stripped off their clothing, they settled into the shallow end of the spring and leaned back against the edge. Kagome was the first one to speak.

"I wonder why Inukigo-chan didn't want to come with us."

"I don't know," Sango lied. She knew that Inukigo had been waiting for a chance to talk to Inuyasha and she had promised not to tell Kagome about it, "She said that she'd be by later anyway."

"Yeah," Kagome sighed, "I hope that nothing's wrong."

"I doubt it Kagome-chan. You shouldn't worry so much."

"But she just seems as though she has a lot of issues. Inuyasha said that something happened a long time ago and that she hasn't gotten completely over it yet. When Inuyasha was telling me where we were going a few days ago, she got really upset and ran off. I asked him about it and he just said it was something about Sesshomaru. He didn't want to get into it."

"Yeah, I noticed that Inukigo-chan got touchy when we mentioned Sesshomaru too. Remember that day we got back to the village, when Houshi-sama suggested that she resembled Sesshoumaru? We asked her about it just before you came back. She said it was something she didn't want to talk about. Do you think that it may be something that affects Inuyasha as well?"

"I'm pretty sure. He asked me not to ask about it. I don't know what to really think of it. I'm kinda worried about the both of them. I wish I could help."

"You know, as much as I hate to say this Kagome-chan, but Inuyasha is right. You worry way too much."

"It's only natural to worry isn't it?"

"Well, yes. But you have to realize that they have been dealing with this for a very long time. If they really want you to help them, they'll come to you about it. You shouldn't pry into something that they're not ready to share yet."

"I suppose so." Kagome said dejectedly. She still worried about them, but she would stop asking about it until they were ready to share it with her. Both girls fell into comfortable silence, until Kagome got a confused look on her face.

"Sango-chan, did the water just get colder?"

"I thought it was just me."

"No, the water is getting definitely getting colder. This isn't normal, maybe we should get out now."

"I am afraid that I can not allow you to do that." came a voice from the forest.

"Who's there?! Show yourself!" Sango yelled.

"Very well."

A woman then stepped out into plain view. She was a little taller than Sango and had to be the coldest looking woman either Kagome or Sango had ever seen. Kagome was compelled to think that her cold features even rivalled Kikyou's. She had straight coal black hair that fell down her back in a low ponytail. Her eyes were a cold ice blue that could seemingly freeze a person with a single look, which were the same colour as her ankle length kimono. She stood at the end of the spring opposite to Kagome and Sango with a look that showed absolutely no emotion.

"Who are you?" Kagome asked wearily.

The woman's face suddenly split into a cold smile that sent shivers up both girls' spines.

"My name is Koorimizu," she said as she bowed low, then raised just her head to look at Kagome and Sango, "Naraku-sama sends his good wishes."

Sango and Kagome's mouths dropped open in shock as both girls moved to try to scramble out of the spring.

"No, no, no. Can't have you doing that now." she said shaking her finger back and forth, then crooking her finger towards the girls, beckoning them to her. The simple action created a strong current in the normally still water that pulled both Kagome and Sango toward the deeper end of the spring.

"Foolish girls. As my name implies I have power over water and ice. Why do you think I came to you while you were in the spring?" Koorimizu said with a laughing tone. She then began to twirl her finger, which immediately created a large whirlpool that surrounded Kagome and Sango.

"Sorry taijya, but this visit was meant for the miko only. You'll be needing to get out now."

"Nani?" Sango said confused at the statement. Things suddenly became clear as the current grabbed Sango, separating her from Kagome, then threw her out of the spring and into a tree.

"Ahh!!" Sango screamed as she was hurled through the air. After she hit the tree she slide to the ground with the wind knocked out of her, but was not unconscious. She groaned as she looked up to see how Kagome was fairing. She was still in the deep end of the spring with the whirlpool surrounding her.

"Now that she's out of there," Koorimizu said as she looked at Sango then back to Kagome, "I have orders to carry out," she then leaned in over the water slightly and looked Kagome straight in the eye, "Naraku-sama wants you to die."

Kagome grew panicked, and looked around frantically, realizing that there was no way for her to escape. She looked to Sango desperately, who had managed to grab a towel to cover herself, before she felt the current grab her and drag her under the water in the deep end of the spring. Sango looked on terrified, and was about to jump back in to help.

"I don't think so taiyja." Koorimizu said coldly. She swept her hand over the water, causing crystal clear ice about three inches thick to completely cover the spring, "You will never get to her now." She said laughingly as she backed up into the trees and disappeared. Sango didn't even notice her leave.

"KAGOME-CHAN!!"

Inukigo watched as Kagome and Sango walked off into the forest towards the hot spring.

'_Sorry guys, but this is the chance I've been waiting for._'

She looked over to Inuyasha, who had yet to move from his spot by the tree, and then to Miroku who was itching to follow after the other female companions.

"Inuyasha, how about you and me go look for some fire wood and something to eat?"

Inuyasha looked up at her then over to the would-be monk who was starting to look a little excited.

"What about the lecher?" Inuyasha asked.

"Oh, he'll stay right here and set up camp. Shippou and Kirara can make sure that he doesn't go anywhere."

Miroku's face immediately fell.

"Yeah, I guess we could."

"Alright, let's go."

Both hanyous then took off towards the forest. After a few minutes of running side by side Inuyasha spoke up.

"Why didn't you go with Kagome and Sango? Is it because of…"

Inukigo stopped running and Inuyasha followed suit.

"No, that's not it. I wanted to talk to you." she replied simply.

"About what."

"Sit down."

"Naze?"

"Just do it." she said using a tone that demanded no argument. Inuyasha caught it and did as he was told.

"Alright, what do you want."

Inukigo crouched in front of him and looked him dead in the eye. Her seriousness was starting to make him feel uneasy.

"I'll just be blunt Inuyasha. Tell me exactly what is going on between you, Kagome, and Kikyou?"

"Huh?" Inuyasha said, looking mortified, "How did you…you've been talking to Sango, haven't you?" he said, his tone becoming laced with anger.

"Yes, because I had some things that I needed to ask her. She happened to tell me about Kikyou. From what I can tell, you are an even bigger baka then I remember. I mean, you run off to an un-dead bitch!"

Inuyasha's lips pulled back into a snarl as he bared his fangs to his sister.

"Where the HELL do you get off butting into my business! And do NOT refer to Kikyou that way!!" he yelled as he leaned in, his voice becoming progressively louder and angrier in an attempt to intimidate his sister. She stood her ground and looked at him indifferently. She knew him too well for this to work on her.

"Stop yelling at me Inuyasha, I'm not going to submit to you," she said calmly and he shut his mouth in favour of growling harshly, "I'm butting in because you're not really doing a very good job of handling it yourself. And I will refer to Kikyou in any way I please. Now calm down and talk to me."

"Fuck off." he said sharply, still staring at her straight in the eye.

"No. Inuyasha, I know you're courting Kagome," his expression changed from angry to shocked and slight pink tint could be seen across his nose, "What, you thought I wouldn't notice? C'mon Inuyasha, give me some credit. I'm an inu youkai too, of course I would recognize it," taking note of his scent and posture, Inukigo determined that he had humbled a little at that and hoped that he would now talk to her, "Now, tell me. Why is it that you are courting Kagome, but haven't marked her, and when Kikyou comes around you leave Kagome and go to her?"

"My reasons are my own! I don't have to explain myself to you! You have no right to interrogate me like this!" Inuyasha yelled hotly, getting just centimetres from her face.

"You're right, you do have your reasons, and you don't have to explain them to me, but I do have a right to question you about them! I am your sister, damn it! I worry for you! How could I not with you being such an unbelievable moron and being hung up on a cold, soulless piece of dirt that insists on desperately clinging to life!"

"Shut. Up. Right. NOW!" Inuyasha yelled at her in a fury as he raised his right hand and slapped her hard across the face. The only movement that her body made was to drop into a sitting position and her head turned in the direction of the hit, baring her abused cheek to him as three deep, bleeding scratches appeared before him.

Inuyasha sat stock still staring at his hand, seemingly in a trance after what he had done. It was something he had never done to her before, and he was now shocked at what had happened. He dared to look back up at her face, only to be met by her scratched, bloody cheek because she had not moved. Her eyes were wide open, but they didn't seem to see anything.

"Inukigo?" he asked quietly.

She didn't look at him and remained still.

"Is this how far apart we've grown?" she asked, but she seemed to be talking to herself, not him, "Am I now being pushed out of the life of the person I trust and love the most as well?" she whimpered.

Inuyasha's eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open when he realized how she had interpreted his actions. He hadn't meant to do it! He wasn't used to people being so blunt with him and he had gotten hot-headed. When she still didn't acknowledge him he began to grow frantic and did something only she and his mother had ever been the recipients or witnesses of. He begged for forgiveness.

He approached slowly and tentatively wrapped his arms around her, whimpering as he went. When she still showed him no recognition he took it a step further and tucked his head under her chin like an ashamed pup. She shifted her head to accommodate him, letting him make his apology, but other than that did not move. Inuyasha then resorted to verbally begging for her forgiveness.

"Sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. Please, sis. I'm so sorry." he mumbled into her neck, repeating the words over and over again.

Inukigo's eyes softened slightly at his display. She knew that this was something that he hated doing because of his pride. She decided to put an end to it before he began to think himself a total weakling. She lifted one hand and rested it on his head, silencing him immediately. She began to stroke his hair reassuringly.

"I know Inuyasha, I know. I forgive you. It still hurt though."

He didn't move from his position, comfortable with not being able to see her face at the moment.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hit you. I didn't mean to make you think what you did. It's just…no one is ever that blunt with me about this situation. The others just dance around it. I just lost my temper and I…"

"Inuyasha, it's alright. I understand. Now look at me," he obeyed and moved back so he could look her in the eye, "I've forgiven you. It's no big deal so forget about."

"But, I cut your face." Inuyasha said sadly as he moved his hand to her injured cheek.

"It's fine, Inuyasha."

"No it isn't!" he replied, grabbing her chin and turning her cheek towards him. She did not struggle against him and let him make amends with her. She winced when his tongue came into contact with the stinging scratches, but quickly relaxed as the action began to sooth the stinging out of them.

Inuyasha grimaced at the taste of her blood in his mouth. This wasn't the first time he had done this. He had done it many times in the past on scratches and cuts, and she had done the same for him. However, this had been the first, and he vowed it would be the last, time that he had been the one to inflict the wound. That thought alone made the blood taste that much worse. When he could no longer taste the blood he pulled back to inspect her cheek and was pleased to find the wounds closed and healing.

"You done?" Inukigo asked softly.

"Yeah." Inuyasha replied before dropping his hand.

"Good," she said and then stared straight into his eyes once again, "You gonna answer my question now?"

"You're not gonna give up, are you?" Inuyasha sighed.

"No. You should know me better than that." Inukigo said, still staring at him.

Inuyasha's eyes shifted a little before he turned his head and averted his gaze. He hated being in these situations. Inukigo was one of the few people who could get him to submit, Kagome being the other. He could never hold her gaze.

"It's complicated."

Inukigo looked at her brother with concern, then panic. '_Aw, shit. Now he's distraught. Whenever he gets this way it means it's really bad._' She got up, then crawled over and sat up on her knees behind him. She then put her arms under his and wrapped them around his chest and laid her chin on his shoulder. He remained absolutely motionless through the whole thing, as if he didn't even feel her holding him. He only acknowledged her when she rubbed her cheek against his and began to growl softly in an attempt to comfort him. He sighed as he relaxed his posture and rubbed her cheek back.

"That's better," Inukigo said as she rested her head in the juncture of his neck and shoulder, "You gonna explain now?"

"Where do I start?" he asked quietly, though not to her.

"It's okay. Just go slow and start wherever you want. Or maybe I could ask you questions and you answer them? Does that sound better?"

"Yeah, that would be better." Inuyasha replied in a sigh.

"Alright. Well, why haven't you marked Kagome. I have some suspicions, but I want to hear your reasons first."

"Well, there's Kikyou…"

"Uhumm…I figured that. Sango said something about a promise to protect her. What's that about?"

"Naraku is still after Kikyou's 'life,' or what's left of it. I promised to protect her from him, and to put her soul to rest."

"And what would do that?"

Inuyasha paused for a moment before answering slowly.

"My death, apparently."

"Inuyasha…Sango said she once tried to drag you to hell with her. Do you really want to die with her?" Inukigo asked quietly in a worried tone.

"At first I did," Inuyasha answered truthfully, "I thought that I had no reason to live, and that after Naraku was defeated I would go to Hell with her. But, I've grown so close to Kagome and the others since then, and now you're back as well. All that makes me feel like I have something to live for. I want to live," and then a slight smile came across his face, "Kagome wants me to live."

Inukigo caught the smile. "You want to live with her." she said softly.

Inuyasha didn't deny it. She already knew that he was courting Kagome, so it would have been pointless. He only nodded and tried to fight the blush appearing on his face.

"I still want to bring Kikyou's soul to rest, but I don't know how to do that now."

Inukigo was glad that he was talking to her openly now, and thought for a moment before coming up with a way to answer him.

"Inuyasha, Sango told me that Kagome was the reincarnation of Kikyou. So that would mean that her soul was already at rest within Kagome before she was resurrected. Wouldn't the way to put her to rest be to put her soul back where it belongs, inside Kagome, instead of it going to Hell?"

Inuyasha thought about what Inukigo had said. It made sense. Kikyou's soul was technically now Kagome's soul. In order for her to be at rest it would need to go back where it belonged.

"You know, I think you're right about that."

Inukigo got a smug smile on her face that Inuyasha caught in his peripheral vision.

"Of course I'm right, you baka."

"Don't be so cocky."

"Keh, you're one to talk. Is that all Kikyou has to do with it?"

"Well, not exactly…"

"What else is there?" Inukigo sighed.

"It's just…I made a promise to Kikyou. That promise will prevent me from devoting myself completely to Kagome. I don't feel right asking her to be my mate when I can't pledge myself to her completely."

"Inuyasha, you need to explain these things to Kagome. I'm sure that she'll understand, but right now she thinks that you still love Kikyou. Do you?"

Inuyasha looked thoughtful, before turning his head slightly to look her in the eye.

"I do care for her well being, and I always will, but no, I longer love her. The Kikyou I loved died fifty years ago. Kagome is the one I love now."

Inukigo looked at him wide eyed with her mouth hanging open.

"Nani?" He asked, irritated.

"I can't believe it. You just admitted to me that you loved Kagome, and I didn't even need to ask you about it! My brother has matured so much!" Inukigo said in a proud voice.

Inuyasha froze for a second, then realized he had indeed for the first time admitted out loud that he did love Kagome, and in the presence of his sister no less. His face turned a shade of red that matched his haori, and he quickly averted his gaze, suddenly finding his hands very interesting.

"Oh, don't be that way. You don't have to be so embarrassed," Inukigo chided. Then she got a big grin on her face, "My Inuyasha is in love! My nii-chan is in love!" she said in a sing song voice as she rocked back a forth and nuzzled his cheek happily.

"Ooi!" Inuyasha said laughingly as he tried to get her to stop, "What's this about? You never acted like this last time."

"Oh," Inukigo said, stopping her attentions, "You never told me once that you loved Kikyou, and even though I assumed it, I was never sure because you acted so unnaturally around her sometimes."

"Oh, I see." Inuyasha replied. '_It's true. I would not act like myself sometimes around Kikyou because I wanted her to accept me. With Kagome things seem so much more natural._'

"So you understand right? That you need to explain these things to Kagome?"

"Hai."

"Good. Now that we have that straightened out, what else?"

"Well, I don't want to put her in more danger than she's already in from being in this era."

"What do you mean?"

"We can never know when Naraku is watching us. If he was to ever see that mark on her neck, he'd know exactly how much she means to me."

"You're afraid that Naraku will do something to her to get to you."

"Aa."

"Well then, maybe you can at least talk to her about it in her time. Tell her that you want to mark her, but let her know why you can't right now. That would solve that wouldn't it?"

"I guess it would…"

"Is there something else Inuyasha?"

"Would she really want me to mark her and someday be her mate?" he said quietly.

"What makes you think that she wouldn't want you?!"

"I'm just a hanyou, a half-breed. What have I ever done to deserve someone like Kagome?" he said sadly.

"Inuyasha," Inukigo said softly, "I've told you before that you shouldn't put yourself down so much. I'm sure that Kagome doesn't think of you in the way you're thinking about yourself now, so I'm sure that she won't hesitate to accept becoming your mate. I can't see any reason for her to reject you."

Inuyasha 'humphed' and mumbled something that sounded like 'baka ookami.'

'_Stupid wolf? What could he be talking abo…ohhhh…_' "You mean that Kouga right?"

"Wha…how did you…Sango told you right?" Inukigo nodded into his shoulder, "Then you know all about it."

"I know that Kagome has no feelings for him other than friendship."

"She says that, but her actions show something completely different."

"I'm gonna have a talk with Kagome about this later, but think about it Inuyasha - she is not only completely human, but she is also from five hundred years in the future. How much do you think she knows about courting?"

"Umm…not much I'm guessing." Inuyasha replied sheepishly.

"Try nothing. Sango is a taiyja and she didn't know anything about it. Don't worry, I'll explain everything to her, so you can talk to her about the marking the next time you go to her world."

"Thanks sis, you can be really helpful when you want to be."

"Hey, you help me, I help you. That is how it works you know, nii-chan." Inukigo said as she ruffled his hair and scratched his ears.

"Ahhh!!!"

"What was that?" Inuyasha said as both of their heads shot up and their ears perked up at the scream.

"It sounded like Sango." Inukigo said as she stood up. Inuyasha stood up beside her.

"We should get going, something might have happened to them."

"Matte, Inuyasha," Inukigo said putting a hand on his shoulder, "I'll go. Something might have just startled her. No reason for you to get in trouble. You go and do what we were supposed to be doing in the first place. I'll call out for you if I need you, so don't go out of hearing range."

"Alright, you better call out if you need help. Don't try to show off or anything."

"When have I ever done that, Inuyasha?" Inukigo asked innocently as a grin broke out on her face and she ran off through the forest towards the hot spring.

'_What could Sango have been screaming about? She doesn't strike me as someone who would be easily startled._' Then a scent caught Inukigo's attention. '_Naraku? No, it's a little bit different, but there's definitely a youkai nearby, but where…the hot spring! Oh shit!_'

"KAGOME-CHAN!!"

"Okay, that was definitely Sango, and that definitely didn't sound good!" Inukigo was at the spring in moments, only to see a towel clad Sango pounding at the ice covered spring. '_Wait, ice covered??_'

"Sango, what's going on?! What's with the ice? And where's Kagome…oh no!!" Inukigo screamed as she saw exactly why Sango was pounding on the ice. Under the crystal clear ice was Kagome, pounding on it from the other side as she fought to get out.

"INUYASHA!!!" she screamed at the top of her lungs before she got down on the ice next to the frenzied Sango and pushed her slightly out of the way so she could begin her attempts to break the ice.

"Sango, go ahead and put your clothes on before Inuyasha gets here, I can handle this." Inukigo said as she began to alternate between beating on the ice with her fists and scratching at it with her claws.

"O-okay." Sango stuttered as she ran to grab her clothes.

"Damn it, what kind of ice is this?! It won't break, I can't even put a scratch in it!!" Inukigo yelled as she continued to beat her now bloody hands on the seemingly indestructible ice.

"The demon that attacked us did it. I've never seen anything like this before. How are we supposed to get her out! At this rate she'll drown!"

"I could used the Touitsaiga. The 'Kaze no Kizu' should be able to do it," Inukigo thought aloud, "But that probably wouldn't be a good idea. I'm not very experienced with it. I might hit Kagome. We'll have to wait for Inuyasha. Damn it!" Inukigo swore as she brought both hands together into one fist over her head and brought it down as hard as she could. She was sure she had broken some bones by now. The good thing was that Kagome was still right there under ice, but Inukigo doubted that she would be able to hold her breath much longer.

"What's going on?!" Inuyasha yelled as he came across the ice to where Inukigo was still pounding away. "Why are you…where's Kagome?!"

"Get out the Tessaiga Inuyasha! We need a hole in this ice, NOW!!" Inukigo yelled as she noticed that Kagome wasn't really pounding on the ice anymore. She had only needed to tell Inuyasha once. Inukigo turned to see him a few feet away with the Tessaiga over his head. She saw him bring it down, and the 'Kaze no Kizu' began to cut through the ice. She then turned back to look at Kagome, only she wasn't there anymore, and Inukigo froze.

"Fuck!"

"What? What is it?!" Inuyasha yelled, but he never got an answer as Inukigo pushed him out of the way and jumped into the hole that was still being cut open. She felt her upper arms burn as they came into contact with the 'Kaze no Kizu,' but as soon as she hit the water she felt like an ice cube. Her body was almost numb after just a few seconds.

'_Shit, it's FUCKIN' COLD!! I thought it was still warm under the ice. How the hell did Kagome last so long in here? I'm half demon and I feel like I'm freezing to death already. C'mon Kagome, where are you?_'

Her eyes were burning from the cold, and it felt like her ears were going to fall off. She wasn't sure how long she could last down here.

'_There!_'

She could see Kagome's ebony black hair at the bottom of the spring. She picked up her pace and when she reached Kagome she grabbed her under her arms. She was so numb if she hadn't seen Kagome in her hands she wouldn't have known she was there. She looked into Kagome's face, but could see no life in it. She was limp and her lips were blue, and Inukigo couldn't feel for life signs because of the lack of feeling in her own limbs.

'_Oh please, oh please be alive Kagome! You're not even my sister yet, you can't die now! What would Inuyasha do without you?!_'

She kept the younger girl facing her as she wrapped one arm around her then began to swim back towards the hole as fast as she could. She could feel herself beginning to black out from the cold.

'_No, not yet. Not yet. I'm almost there. Damn, what is with this water? It's way beyond cold enough to be frozen, but it's still liquid._'

She was nearly to the hole and she could now see the bright red of her brother's haori.

Inuyasha stumbled backwards as Inukigo pushed him out of the way as she jumped into the hole that was still surrounded by his 'Kaze no Kizu' attack. '_What the hell?_'

When the light cleared, he could see a faint red tint in the water. '_Shit, she was cut as she jumped in. Why did she take off so fast?_'

His unspoken question was answered by a frantic Sango.

"Kagome-chan must have passed out! Oh Kami!"

"Sango calm down. You won't help anyone like that." Inuyasha said as calm as he could manage. The truth was, he was worse than Sango, he just held it in better. '_Oh Kami, let her be alright, please let her be alright!_'

"What's going on?" came a voice from behind them.

"Miroku, what are you doing here?" Inuyasha asked, wondering how the monk had known to come.

"I heard Inukigo scream your name like the world was about to end. It didn't sound like you had been caught peeking so I figured something was wrong. Why is the hot spring covering in…ice?"

"I don't know, Sango can explain later, after Inukigo comes up with Kagome."

"You mean they're under the ice?"

"Aa, I got here and she was pounding the hell out of it because Kagome was down there. I made a hole and she was down it before the 'Kaze no Kizu' could dissipate. They've been down there a bit too long for my liking." Inuyasha said as he moved his hand towards the water. As soon as he touched it he reeled back cursing as if he'd been burned.

"What's wrong Inuyasha? Is it that hot?" Sango asked worriedly.

"Hell no! It's freakin' cold! How could it be so cold without it freezing?" '_Shit, how long has Kagome been down there? If it's this cold to me she's probably frozen solid by now._'

"It must have been the power of the demon that attacked us. She said she had control over water and ice." Sango explained.

"I guess." Inuyasha replied, but he wasn't really listening. He was staring intently at the water for some sign of life. He was now not only worried about Kagome, but for his sister as well. '_C'mon, c'mon, you can make it. I know the both of you can make it._' Suddenly he saw a flicker of white, then black and red.

"I see them! Inukigo's got her!" he exclaimed as he saw them coming closer.

Sango and Miroku crowded the hole with Inuyasha as Inukigo weakly broke the surface of the water.

"Inukigo…" Inuyasha said, stunned by the sight of his sister.

"P-pull us o-out In-Inuyasha. I c-can't move." Inukigo replied weakly as she began to dip back below the water. Inuyasha was quick to comply and grabbed her upper arms and hauled both her and Kagome out of the water. He winced when he touched her. She was as cold as a block of ice! No wonder she hadn't felt it when he touched the deep wounds on her arms that were made when she had jumped into the hole. He was growing more and more frightened as he looked at his sister and Kagome. Both were blue in the face, but since Kagome was naked - which at the moment he wasn't thinking about - he could see that she had a bluish tint all over the parts of her body that he could see, which consisted of her back and legs, since Inukigo still had a death grip on her.

"Inuyasha, g-give Kagome y-your haori. Then S-Sango has to ch-check her out. I d-don't know if s-she has any life signs. I c-couldn't check." Inukigo said to him in a shaky voice. It was then that he noticed how badly she was shaking. He made no argument as he removed the article of clothing, then separated his sister from Kagome and wrapped the black haired girl tightly in his haori. Inukigo had collapsed to the ice as soon as they were pulled apart, but she told him as forcefully as she could to worry about Kagome first, and he complied to her wishes, bringing Kagome to the shore for Sango's inspection before he came back to pick her up.

"Are you okay?" he asked quietly.

"Other t-than the f-fact that I can't f-feel a damn th-thing, and I th-think that I b-broke both my h-hands and m-most of my f-fingers, I'm p-pretty good." she replied.

"You're arms are cut up too."

"O-oh, I thought I f-felt something w-when I j-jumped in."

"Gods, you're shaking so bad. You feel like you're made of ice."

"S-still fuckin' c-cold, tired too."

"Don't you dare fall asleep while you're so cold you stubborn bitch. You can wait until you're warmed up. I'll let you sleep as much as you want."

Their conversation was cut short by a shrill cry from Sango.

"She's not breathing!!"

Inuyasha broke into a run for the rest of the short distance to where Sango was hovering over Kagome and Miroku was just off to the side, then dropped down next them. He watched as Sango began to give Kagome mouth to mouth to get her breathing again, then looked to Miroku for some explanation.

"Sango said that she has a heart beat, which is remarkable considering how long she was in that cold water, but she's not breathing because she started taking in water. Sango will be able to get her to come around. She'll be alright Inuyasha."

Inuyasha was looking worried, until coughing brought his attention back to Kagome, who was now lying on her side coughing up water while Sango patted her back. Everyone present breathed a sigh of relief. Inukigo was the first to speak up.

"Inuyasha, g-give me to M-Miroku."

"Huh? Why?"

"S-so you can t-take Kagome." she said with a tired smile on her face.

Inuyasha looked to Kagome, who was now shaking just as badly as Inukigo was, then nodded to his sister and passed her to Miroku, who had taken off the outer most layer of his robes and wrapped her up in it.

"No f-free gropes M-Miroku," Inukigo threatened.

"I won't, you have no worries of that Inukigo." Miroku replied.

She said nothing, just closed her eyes and settled into his warmth, still shaking and completely numb.

"Don't let her fall asleep Miroku!" Inuyasha called as he picked up the equally shivering Kagome.

"Alright!" Miroku replied as he shook the half-asleep hanyou awake, "Sorry, but it's dangerous for you to fall asleep with your body temperature so low."

"I k-know, can't h-help it though. Too t-tired."

Miroku looked at her sympathetically before giving her another shake to rouse her yet again as he turned to see Inuyasha having to do the same with Kagome, and then Sango following along with Kagome's bathing supplies and clothes. They walked slowly together back to camp.

Back at camp things had turned rather hectic. When Shippou had seen the state of Inukigo and Kagome he went ballistic. Inuyasha had convinced him that they would be fine and managed to get him to calm down a little. Inukigo was now refusing to be helped until Kagome was taken care of, which was causing some arguments.

"Inukigo, at least let Sango change you out of your wet clothes! They're only keeping you cold! At least Kagome is mostly dry."

"Sango, g-get Kagome warm f-first. I'm the one w-with youkai blood. I c-can handle this f-for a while so help her, p-please?"

Sango hesitated before nodding and turning to Inuyasha and Kagome.

"Inuyasha, can you bring Kagome-chan over behind those trees for me?" she said as she grabbed Kagome's bag. Inuyasha looked at his sister, still shaking and wrapped up in Miroku's arms, then got up with Kagome in his arms to do as Sango said. When he came back he went to get his sister and Miroku handed her over.

"I'll go and get some firewood. We're going to need it. Come on Shippou, you can help me." Miroku said as he got up and left the campsite.

"Alright." Shippou replied and jumped on Miroku's shoulder.

Inuyasha manoeuvred Inukigo so that her back was to his chest and tried to give her as much body heat as he could while rubbing her arms to try to bring some feeling back into them.

"Baka," he said to her, but there was no harshness in his voice, "You soaking wet. Even Miroku's robe is soaked through."

"I'll be okay Inuyasha," her voice steadier now that her temperature was rising, "It's better that Kagome be taken care of first. She's human and was in there longer than me," she explained as she settled back into him. His hands were slowly bringing the feeling back into her arms. Wait, the feeling in her arms?

"Ow! Damn, stop rubbing my arms Inuyasha!" she cried out and he immediately stopped.

"What is it?" he asked worriedly.

"My arms aren't numb anymore. I can feel my injuries now. Shit…help me take this robe off please?"

Inuyasha did as she asked, and grimaced as he saw her bleeding arms.

"These weren't bleeding before and you couldn't feel them because you were so cold," he then lightly grabbed her wrists to get a look at her hands, "I think you were right about your hands being broken. You beat the shit out of them trying to break that ice. What was with it anyway? I didn't see a scratch in it even after all you did to it." he commented as he carefully removed her gloves. Inukigo winced as the gloves passed over her hands and fingers.

"I don't know, that youkai that Sango was talking about had some serious control over water and ice. The spring should have been solid ice for how cold it was in there."

"Yeah, I felt the water after you went in. It was so cold it burned. It frightened the shit out of me to know that you and Kagome were down there. How did you manage to last so long in that water? How did Kagome?"

"I guess it was because I was determined. As for Kagome, I guess that her spiritual powers protected her somewhat. It's the only thing I can think of."

"Inukigo-chan, what can we dress you in until your clothes are dry?" Sango asked as she came back, helping a fully clothed and dried Kagome walk while carrying Inuyasha's haori.

"Is the haori drier than Miroku's robe? If it is I'll wear that."

"Yeah it is. Do you need some help Inukigo-chan?"

"Yes, please Sango," Inukigo replied standing up shakily. Inuyasha steadied her as she got the feeling back in her legs, "My hands and fingers are broken so I can't grip anything."

Sango nodded, then handed Kagome over to Inuyasha before she steadied Inukigo to help her walk.

"I'll bandage your arms and hands up for you too."

They were about to proceed a little off to the side, before a certain perverted monk came back with an armload of wood.

"Lets go in the woods Sango." Inukigo said in an annoyed tone, and both girls walked out into the trees.

Miroku looked on, dropped the wood then snapped his fingers and had a look on his face that said 'darn it, so close.'

"Now is not the time, bouzu." Inuyasha said threateningly.

Miroku held up his hands in a defensive gesture.

"No worries Inuyasha, I was joking."

"Yeah, I'm sure. Just light the stupid fire."

"Hai, hai."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome said quietly, catching his attention, "Arigatou, for lending me your haori."

"Keh, don't mention it. You needed something to wear so you wouldn't freeze to death out of the water." Inuyasha said with a slight blush on his face. He then noticed that she was shivering. "Are you still cold?" he asked concerned.

Kagome was a little startled by his uncharacteristic open concern. He usually only showed feelings that he considered to be 'weak' to her when no one else was around.

"H-hai, a little, but it's not…" she stopped when Inuyasha sat behind her, pulled her back into his chest, and wrapped his arms around her. "I-Inuyasha?" she quickly glanced at Miroku, who looked like he was about to exorcise the uncooperative match that he was using to light the fire. '_Why is Inuyasha acting like this right out in the open? He never does this where anyone can see._'

"That better?" Inuyasha asked her quietly

"Hai. Arigatou." Kagome replied, still contemplating his actions.

He leaned his head on her shoulder and whispered in her ear so that only she would hear him.

"I was so fuckin' scared Kagome." Kagome could hear a slight quiver in his voice and glanced at him in her peripheral vision. "I was so scared that you were going to die, right in front of me."

'_Ahh…so that's why he's acting this way._' Kagome thought. She reached back and rubbed his ears reassuringly. "It's alright Inuyasha. I'm right here with you, like I always am."

Inuyasha sighed as buried his face in her hair. "I'm glad for that."

Kagome smiled at his openness and continued playing with his hair and ears. It was a few moments before she spoke again.

"Inuyasha, what happened back there? All I really remember after I was trapped under the ice is that it was really cold. How did Inukigo manage to break her hands and fingers and get her arms cut up so badly?"

'_That's just like you Kagome. Always worrying about everyone else before you worry about yourself._' "When I got there, Inukigo was pounding and clawing at the ice with everything she had in her, that's how she broke her hands and fingers. The damn stuff wouldn't budge, she couldn't even make a scratch in it. That's why when I got there I had to cut a hole with the 'Kaze no Kizu.' I think that was where you lost consciousness so she jumped in before the 'Kaze no Kizu' dissipated and it cut up her arms."

"Owowowowow!!" was heard from the trees where Inukigo and Sango had disappeared and all heads turned in that direction.

"Stay still Inukigo-chan! I need to set the bones in your hands and brace them before I bandage them so they'll heal properly."

"I'd like to see you try to! OW!"

Inuyasha chuckled a little to himself before shouting out a snide remark.

"You're being awfully wussy there sis!!"

"Shut up Inuyasha!! You baka! OW! Fuck, that hurts Sango!"

Inuyasha laughed lightly before Kagome hit him on the shoulder. "Ooi! What was that for?"

"Don't make fun of her. She's hurt."

"I'm not making fun of her, I'm just trying to take her mind off it a little bit. Not like her injuries are life threatening anyway."

"OWWW!!!"

"Although you would never know that from the noise she's making. C'mon Inukigo, I thought you were tougher than this!"

"Grrr…I said shut up," Inukigo said as she stepped out of the trees with Sango. She was wearing his haori, which was too big for her and left nothing but her legs bare, "When I can use my hands again I am gonna hit you so hard…" she threatened.

Inuyasha just laughed as she came to sit beside him.

"I know you will. So, how bad are they?" he asked pointing to her hands.

Inukigo raised her arms so the long sleeves of the haori fell back and revealed her heavily bandaged hands.

"Everything broken except my thumbs. Sango wrapped them tight so I would remember not to move them too much," she said and dropped her hand in her lap, "This is going to be a pain for the next day or two. And I wanted to go after that youkai too." she added with a sigh.

"I'm sure you'll get your chance at her Inukigo-chan." Sango said after laying out Inukigo's clothes by the fire and then sitting down near Miroku, but not before giving him a warning glare.

"I agree with Sango. I'm sure that the youkai will be back and you'll have your opportunity." Miroku added.

"I hope so," Inukigo replied, her face hardening as she resisted the urge to wring her fists, "When I find that youkai, she is going to seriously regret messing with any of us. I'll make sure of it."

* * *

Nani - What? 

Taiyja - demon exterminator

Naze - why?

Nii-chan - big brother (same as onii-chan)

Matte - wait

Ooi - hey

Hai - yes

Aa - yeah

Haori - the red shirt that Inuyasha wears

Well, there's chapter three. I'll try to get chapter four out in a week or so. I would really appreciate some reviews. That's not the reason that I'm writing, but it is nice to get some feedback once in a while, so please review! Arigatou, Ja Ne!!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"So," Inuyasha said, "What was this youkai that attacked you like? And what happened exactly?" he asked, directing it to Sango and Kagome.

"Well," Sango spoke up, deciding to let Kagome rest, "We were in the spring talking, when the water suddenly started to get cold. Kagome-chan and I decided that it didn't seem right and that we should get out, but we were stopped by a woman, or rather a female youkai. She told us that her name was Koorimizu, and that Naraku sent us his good wishes."

"That must mean that she is his newest incarnation then." Miroku said.

'_So he can make incarnations of himself? That must be why I could smell his scent on my way to the hot spring._' Inukigo thought to herself.

"Yeah, that's what we thought too, so we tried to get away, but she had control of the water and dragged us back. Then she made a whirlpool and threw me out, saying that her visit was meant specifically for Kagome-chan. She told Kagome-chan that Naraku wanted her dead, then pulled her underwater. I tried to go back in, but that was when she covered the spring in ice and disappeared. After that Inukigo-chan showed up, and well you know what happened then."

"So, he has another incarnation running around. The coward. He never does anything for himself." Inuyasha growled.

Kagome looked to Inuyasha, whose lap she was still sitting in, and then over to his sister who was being very quiet. She gasped when she noticed the claw marks on her face. Those hadn't been there earlier when they left for the hot-spring. What had happened for her to get those?

"Inukigo-chan?" Kagome questioned, drawing the attention of the distant hanyou.

"Nani, Kagome?"

"Those claw marks on your face, they weren't there earlier. Where did they come from?"

Inuyasha stiffened slightly, but Kagome didn't notice it.

"Oh, Inuyasha and I went to get firewood and something to eat after you went to the hot-spring. We ran into something. No bid deal." Inukigo replied. Sango had asked about them as well, but she hadn't told her the real reason behind them either. She didn't want them to be angry at Inuyasha for something that he had been forgiven for.

"Oh, alright then." Kagome said, turning back to the fire.

Inukigo went back to what she was thinking about before. '_So, Naraku sends his incarnations to do his work for him regularly. He really is the coward Inuyasha says he is. I can't wait 'til I run into the bastard again. I'll tear him apart with my own claws!_' She then tilted her head up to the sky, where to her horror she could see the full moon even though the sun hadn't completely set. '_Shit, how did I manage to forget what tonight is in such a short amount of time? It must have been because of everything that happened._'

"Damn it." she swore quietly.

"Inukigo-chan?" Kagome asked, looking at her curiously.

Inuyasha looked at his sister, and then to where she was staring before his eyes widened in recognition. '_We must have both forgotten about it in all the excitement._'

"Do you want to leave?" Inuyasha asked, which confused Kagome even more. They had now drawn the attention of the rest of their group.

Inukigo didn't turn away from the moon, but shook her head.

"No, I'm not going to hide from them." she said quietly.

"Hide from us? What do you mean Inukigo?" Shippou asked as he jumped on her head.

Inukigo didn't answer him, just looked on as the sun completely disappeared behind the horizon.

'_It's starting._'

Her breath hitched as she felt the changes in her body. Her claws and fangs shortening into normal nails and teeth. Then her eyesight dulled, and she heard Shippou's surprised shriek as her ears shifted and became human ears on the sides of her head and her hair colour changed from it's normal silvery white to deep coal black. However she felt something very different after this particular transformation. Excruciating pain.

Shippou had jumped down from her head to her lap to observe her, and grew worried when he saw her face contort with pain.

"Inukigo, what's wrong? I've seen Inuyasha transform before, and it never seemed like it hurt him."

Inukigo couldn't answer him. All that would escape her lips were either a whimper or cry of pain. She felt as though her arms would fall off and she could feel a dull throbbing in her cheek. By this time Shippou's observation and the pain filled sounds she was making had caused concern to rise up in the others.

"Inukigo, you alright?" Inuyasha asked with concern. She shook her head no and took deep breathes to try and steady herself. She was slowly adjusting to the pain in her arms, but they still hurt like hell.

"What's wrong?" Shippou asked her again, reaching up to pat her face, thankfully on her uninjured cheek. This time the frightened tone in his voice forced Inukigo to open her eyes and look into his scared ones.

"My arms hurt." she replied painfully

"But your arms weren't hurting you at all before." Kagome said worriedly.

"Her demon blood was increasing her tolerance for pain," Inuyasha explained and he watched his sister try to gather herself with sympathy, "Up until now her wounds were continually being healed so they wouldn't have hurt her as much. Now that her demon blood is dormant it's not helping her with it anymore."

"I've also never been injured and then turn human before," Inukigo added, now able to speak a little more freely, "I just went to having hardly any pain to having a lot of it as fast as you can blink. It just hit me really quickly."

"I'll go and get some pain killers for you from my pack." Kagome said, getting up from Inuyasha's lap.

"Pain killers?" Inukigo asked.

"It's medicine from her time," Inuyasha explained as he moved over to sit in front of her, "It works the same as the herbs that healers use to ease pain."

"Oh, okay."

"Does this hurt now too?" He asked quietly as he reached out to touch her injured cheek. He frowned when she winced.

"Hai, a little bit."

"I'm sorry."

"I know. You don't need to keep saying it." Inukigo said softly. Inuyasha nodded then saw Kagome coming back with a bottle of water in one hand and the two small pills in the other.

"Here," she said, holding the pills in front of Inukigo's face. When Inukigo looked at her curiously she explained, "These small pills are pain relievers. Don't chew them, I'll give you some water to help swallow them. Now open up."

Inukigo did as she was told, and took the two small pills into her mouth when Kagome gave them to her. She then accepted the mouthful of water that she was offered and swallowed the pills.

"They'll take a little while to start working, and they'll probably make you a little drowsy too."

"Arigatou, Kagome."

"Don't mention it," Kagome said with a smile, "I think I'll help Sango-chan make something for everyone to eat." she added standing up.

"You sure you should Kagome? I think you should take it easy." Inuyasha said.

"I feel ok Inuyasha. I'm just gonna help Sango-chan make some ramen. It's not something stressful anyway, I'll be fine."

"Alright then," he replied, then sat down next to Inukigo. They sat there quietly for some time, watching the others and laughing when Sango hit Miroku over the head with the pot full of water and made him go get more. It was a while before Inuyasha spoke again, "Will you be okay now?"

"Hai, the stuff Kagome gave me is starting to work, and it's not like I've never felt pain before. Why?" Inukigo replied.

"I think we should have something else with that ramen. I'm going to go and catch something to eat."

"Just 'cause I'm human doesn't mean I need you to baby sit me." Inukigo grumbled.

Inuyasha smirked.

"No, I need to baby sit you all the time," he chuckled when she tried to growl at him.

"I'm so going to hurt you later."

"Yeah, yeah. I'll be back in a little bit." he said for the whole camp to hear, then took off into the trees.

Inukigo mumbled to herself for a few moments before she heard Kagome come and sit next to her. They were silent before Kagome spoke up.

"Inukigo-chan, is this the reason that you wouldn't come to the hot-spring with me and Sango-chan? Because if it is you haven't got any reason to hide it from us. We've all known about Inuyasha for a long time, we would have understood…"

"Kagome, Kagome, slow down!" Inukigo interrupted, "This being my human night has nothing to do with why I didn't go to the hot spring. I just had something I needed to do," she then lowered her head, "Although now I wish I had waited and gone to the hot spring with you. I might have been able to prevent what happened."

"Don't blame yourself Inukigo-chan. If you had come with us something worse may have ended up happening. As it is you hurt yourself trying to save me. I'm grateful. Arigatou."

"You're welcome, but you don't have to thank me. I wouldn't let anything happen to you, just the same as I wouldn't let anything happen to any of the others. You're the only friends I've ever had, I'm grateful to have all of you. Oh, and I wasn't planning on hiding my human night from you. I figured that you knew about Inuyasha's so there was nothing for me to worry about."

"We would never use this against you, you know that right?" Sango asked.

"Yes, I know." Inukigo replied.

"Inukigo-chan, can I ask you a question?" Kagome said shyly.

"Go ahead."

"Are you like Inuyasha and hate your human night?"

"Hai." Inukigo replied staring straight ahead.

"I see. So does that mean you wish to become full youkai as well?"

"Iie."

"Eh?"

"I do hate my human night, because I'm vulnerable and can't protect myself, but I do not hate what I am. I like being a hanyou, despite what that makes me." Inukigo sighed sadly as she turned to face Kagome, "As I am, people do not accept me. They look down on me, and consider me worthless. They hate me because I represent something that they feel should never have been - love between a human and a demon. I am both, but at the same time neither, so I can never fit in anywhere. I'm alright with that, I will never force myself to change because others do not like what I am."

Kagome looked at her in awe. She had never expected that answer.

"We don't think of you that way. I wish Inuyasha thought more like you. Inuyasha hates being a hanyou, and wants very much to change what he is. I told him that I like him as he is, but I don't think that he really valued my opinion."

"I'm sure he did Kagome. I wish that more people in this world had the same opinions on hanyous as you do."

"Hey, we do!" Shippou yelled, gesturing to himself, Sango, Miroku, and Kirara.

Inukigo smiled warmly at him and the others.

"Yes, I know. Arigatou."

"I assume that since you like being a hanyou that you would never consider becoming human either." Miroku stated.

"No," Inukigo replied shaking her head, "I like what I am. The youkai in me makes me powerful, but the human in me gives me a heart. Most demons have no compassion, kindness or love in them. They are bloodthirsty and power hungry, and viciously dislike humans. Because of my human side I am not like most demons and I like that. Heh, although I have been told that I am like my father, so I guess I am like some demons."

"I remember hearing stories about your father," Sango said thoughtfully, "The taiyoukai of the Western Territories, almost 70 years ago I think. Very powerful demon, very ruthless too. But he was also very compassionate, and protected the humans in his domain from lesser demons. He was respected greatly by the taijyia."

"I wish I had more memories of him," Inukigo said sadly as she looked to the sky, "All I can really remember is his scent. It always made me feel safe and protected."

"Inuyasha doesn't talk much about your mother or father." Kagome stated.

"I don't really remember our father. Inuyasha and I were very young when he died and we never did get to spend much time with him. Our mother was…beautiful. She was so wonderful. She always made us feel loved and let us know we were worth something, even when everyone around us considered us worthless, dirty half breeds. I still miss her very much." Inukigo answered turning away.

"I'm sorry." Kagome said quietly.

"It's okay," Inukigo said turning her head back to look at Kagome, "Kagome, if it's alright, I'd like to have a talk with you soon. Now is not really the best time, considering the condition that the both of us are in, but I'd like to have it as soon as possible, in a day or two maybe. Is that okay?"

"It's alright. What do you need to talk to me about?"

"It concerns Inuyasha, but I would like it to be private."

"Oh, okay," Kagome said, getting a little nervous. '_What in the world would she need to discuss with me about Inuyasha that would need to be private?_'

Inukigo noticed her nervousness and moved to calm her.

"Don't worry about it," she said softly, moving to place a hand on Kagome's shoulder before she remembered that it was injured and pulled it away. "Hehe, opps," she said sheepishly, causing Kagome to giggle slightly. Inukigo smiled. '_At least she's not nervous anymore._'

"What I was going to say was, don't worry about it, it's nothing bad. It's just that some of it only you should hear, and you would probably want it to be private anyway." Inukigo explained.

"It's alright Inukigo-chan. I understand."

"Good." Inukigo said, smiling. She then got an idea. "Ne, Kagome, how would you like to hear a little about mine and Inuyasha's childhood?"

"Really?" Kagome asked.

Inukigo nearly laughed at the look of childish curiosity on Kagome's face.

"Yes really. But I think that maybe we should move out of everyone's hearing range. I'm going to have a hard time getting Inuyasha to forgive me for telling just you. I'd hate to think how angry he'd be if I told everyone."

"I see your point." Kagome said with a slight giggle. She turned around to look at Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara, who had begun to have their own discussion about Naraku and his newest detachment to tune out the two girls that seemed to be having a private conversation.

"Sango-chan, Miroku-sama, Shippou-chan, Inukigo-chan and I are going to the edge of the campsite to talk. Just far enough so that we are out of earshot okay?"

All three nodded and went back to their previous discussion, while Inukigo and Kagome managed to move to the edge of camp, out of earshot and out of sight behind a large tree. After getting settled, they began to have a conversation that had both girls in fits of laughter.

* * *

A short time later Inuyasha returned to camp carrying a handful of rabbits, only to see that his group was short two members, those two being his sister and Kagome.

"Ooi! Where did Inukigo and Kagome go?" He asked the others none to gently as he tossed the rabbits towards the fire.

"Inuyasha, calm down," Miroku said as he poked at the fire, preparing to roast the rabbits that Inuyasha had brought back, "Inukigo and Kagome-sama went off to have a short conversation."

"About what?"

"Not sure." Miroku replied, "They never really said."

"Why couldn't they have it here?"

"We don't know Inuyasha." Sango replied, getting irritated with the impatient hanyou, "All they said was that they were going to talk about something just out of earshot. They're probably just right there." she said, pointing to the spot where Inukigo and Kagome had entered the forest and the far side of the large clearing that their campsite was located in.

Inuyasha just huffed and plopped down in front of the fire and began poking at it angrily. '_What in the world were they thinking! Wandering off after what happened to the both of them earlier._' His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar giggling coming closer to camp. He then herd hushed whispers, but could not determine exactly what the voices were saying. His head perked up when he saw Kagome and his sister coming out of the forest and making their way across the clearing.

"What then, what then?" Kagome whispered as she giggled.

"Well, after that he…oh, hi Inuyasha." Inukigo said, catching herself when she noticed Inuyasha had returned to camp.

Inuyasha's curiosity as to the topic of their conversation was momentarily forgotten as he got up and marched over to the pair of girls.

"What the hell were the two of you thinking!" he bellowed as he stood directly in front of them. Inukigo looked unfazed, while Kagome oddly seemed to have a hard job keeping a straight face as she looked at him.

"Inuyasha, calm down." Inukigo said in a bored tone.

"No I won't calm down! The two of you went out into the forest without anyone to protect you. Inukigo, not only are you injured but you're also human as well. That youkai is still around somewhere and after what happened earlier you should have known not to go out into the forest alone!"

"Inuyasha, how far away do you think we went? I only brought Kagome far enough away so that we could have our conversation in private. If there had been any youkai anywhere near us you would have known it long before they got to us. sigh I need to sit down." Inukigo announced in a tired tone as she walked past him and sat down with her back leaned against a tree.

Inuyasha watched her go curiously before turning to Kagome, who was still struggling to contain laughter.

"Ooi, what do you find so funny?" he asked her as he cocked an eyebrow.

"Oh, nothing," she replied in a sweet voice that had Inuyasha thinking it had something to do with him, "I'm going to go get something to eat now." she added quickly and took off to sit next to Sango.

Inuyasha shook his head, thinking that he would never understand how women's minds worked, then decided to scold his sister some more. He walked over to her silently and crouched in front of her. She had her eyes closed and appeared to be asleep, but her breathing and heart rate told him otherwise.

"You know better to go off on your own when you can't defend yourself. You do realize how bad it could have turned out if a youkai did show up don't you?"

"Like I said before," Inukigo said, keeping her eyes closed, "We only went as far away as was necessary, which wasn't very far, and I knew that there weren't any youkai in the area because if there were you wouldn't have left camp."

Inuyasha huffed, letting his anger at her drift away.

"I still say it was a stupid decision on your part."

"To each his own opinion, I guess." Inukigo replied, disinterested. She was starting to feel groggy and didn't like it. She guessed that it must have been the medicine that Kagome had given her. '_I should have just dealt with the pain on my own. I don't want to fall asleep._' Inuyasha, who seemed oblivious to her discomfort, got up and walked away only to return a few moments later with a dish of rabbit, which he stuck directly under Inukigo's nose. She cracked open one eye to look at the food in front of her then at the face of her brother.

"Nani?"

"Open up."

"Why?"

"Why do you think? I'm giving you something to eat."

"As in feed me?"

"Keh! It's kinda obvious that you can't do it yourself."

"I don't think so. I'm not hungry." Of course at that moment her stomach decided to betray her.

"Heh, I think this disagrees with you," Inuyasha teased, poking her in the stomach with the chopsticks, "Now, open your mouth!"

Inukigo rolled her eyes and sighed, but when he did not remove the rabbit filled chopsticks from in front of her face she complied and began eating.

"That was so degrading." Inukigo pouted once she had finished.

"Oh, c'mon. It wasn't that bad. You're not hungry now are you?"

"No, but you wait until you have somebody feed you and then tell me how it feels. Damn embarrassing. Making me feel like a helpless, little child." she mumbled to herself.

"I wasn't going to let you stay hungry until your hands healed, you know that. And as for me, I'm not gonna let both of my hands get broken so I won't need anyone to feed me." He answered cockily.

"Yeah, whatever." Inukigo replied in a disinterested tone.

"Is something wrong?" Inuyasha asked concerned. She would normally have given him a better retort than that.

"No, nothing's wrong." she answered tiredly.

"Yes there is. You're not acting like yourself. Something's wrong."

"The drowsy part of that stuff Kagome gave me is started. I'm just a little tired, that's all."

"If you're tired then just go to sleep."

Inukigo gave him a half hearted glare.

"You know why I don't want to go to sleep Inuyasha."

"Yeah, because you're human right now," Inukigo didn't need to answer him so instead focused her energy on staying awake. Inuyasha watched her as she fought to keep her eyes open, "This is pointless Inukigo. You're barely awake so why don't you just go to sleep. You've got me here, along with Kagome and the others, so you don't have to worry about not being protected while you sleep."

Inukigo looked at him sceptically.

"Tell me something Inuyasha. You have the others to watch over you, but do you ever fall asleep while you're human?"

"Ahhh…well, no." he replied sheepishly.

"Then why do you expect me to?"

"You're injured, and Kagome gave you that medicine that made you sleepy. You're going to fall asleep anyway so why don't you just give in now and get some rest."

"No. I've never slept on my human night, and I'm not going to now."

"Gods, you are such a fucking stubborn bitch!" Inuyasha bit out, catching the attention of their companions that were sitting around the camp fire. He startled Inukigo by abruptly standing and then grabbing her by the waist so he could lift her away from the tree she was sitting against.

"Inuyasha! What are you doing?!" Inukigo yelled at him. She tried to fight her way out of his hold when he positioned her in his lap with her back to his chest, but her injuries and fatigue prevented her from making too much of a fuss. She realized then what he was going to do, "Inuyasha, put me down right now! Put me down!"

Inuyasha kept his hold on her as he waited for her to stop thrashing about. Seeing the distress of his friend, Shippou ran over to them with the intention of telling Inuyasha off.

"Inuyasha! Let Inukigo go! She wants you to let her go you moron!" he yelled as he ran over to the brother and sister.

Before Shippou could come to a complete stop, Inuyasha sent him a glare and snarled menacingly at the kit who froze in his tracks just a few feet in front of the angry hanyou. Even Shippou knew when to not push his luck. He didn't go any closer, but he didn't move either so Inuyasha kept up the intimidation act.

"Shippou-chan, come back over here please." Kagome said softly. Shippou didn't take his eyes off Inuyasha as he backed up slowly. Inuyasha gave a bark for good measure which sent the kit scampering back to the safety of Kagome's lap, "Inuyasha?" she asked in a concerned voice.

Inuyasha gave her a look that told her everything was fine, and she nodded in understanding. She then made an effort to get everyone's attention away from the siblings.

Inuyasha turned his attention back to Inukigo, who was still struggling slightly, but quickly wearing herself out. He decided that enough was enough and swiftly moved her hair aside so he could place a strong hold on the back of her neck with his mouth. He made sure to apply just enough pressure to get his point across, being careful not to bite hard enough to leave a mark.

The disciplinary hold did it's job, and Inukigo instantly went slack, making small whimpers of submission, or coming as close to making them as she could with her human vocal cords. Inuyasha had to fight back a smirk. '_Stare downs may be her specialty, but when it comes to submission by force there's not a thing she can do against me._' When he did not release her immediately, Inukigo's whimpers grew more distressed. Inuyasha figured that she had had enough and let go of her neck. Inukigo sighed in relief, but did not start struggling again. She was too exhausted.

"Ready to go to sleep now?" Inuyasha asked quietly.

"Just because I'm too tired to move doesn't mean I'm going to go to sleep." she answered stubbornly.

He rolled his eyes at her stubbornness.

"We'll see about that." Inuyasha replied. He wrapped his arms around her midsection, being careful to avoid her arms, pulling her to him tightly and tucked her head under his chin. He then began to growl softly, the sound being inaudible to human ears, but the vibrations from his chest could be felt through her back and they had a calming effect that caused her to relax into his embrace.

"Cheater." she ground out half heartedly.

"You remember right?" he whispered, "When we were little, and I had to do this when you were afraid to go to sleep because of the nightmares you had about ofukuro's death?"

She didn't answer him but nodded slightly.

"It was months before they stopped happening regularly, and even after that you still had them from time to time."

"Umhmm," Inukigo agreed as she turned in to him as much as she could without putting too much pressure on her arm, "I still have them now sometimes." she said quietly.

"Nani? I thought they stopped altogether a few years before we were sealed." Inuyasha said as he shifted so he could look at her. Inukigo shook her head before answering.

"No, they didn't stop. They just didn't happen very often, and I stopped running to you when they did."

"Has it happened since you've been back?"

"No." Inukigo replied, snuggling deeper into the warmth he was giving off.

"That's good," Inuyasha said. He noticed that her breathing was starting to even out and her heartbeat was slowing, telling that she was close to giving in to sleep, "Inukigo, what was it you were telling Kagome earlier that was making her laugh so much?" he asked curiously.

"Oh, I was telling her about one of the happier moments of our childhood." she answered sleepily.

"Oh, and what did that happen to be?"

"I think we were about six," Inukigo started and Inuyasha froze. No, she wouldn't have told Kagome that. She couldn't have, "You had this nudist phase going on, and declared to ofukuro that you were a big boy and didn't need to wear clothes if you didn't want to," Inuyasha just stared at her horrified. She had! "Of course you then had to run out of the hut without any clothes on, and straight into the one type of plant that we happened to be allergic to when we were little," Inukigo giggled tiredly. Her sleepiness was making her more tactless than usual so she made no effort to lie about what she had told, "You had a rash **_everywhere _**for almost a full week. I was about to tell her all the different ways you tried to scratch it but I saw that you were back at camp so I stopped talking," she looked up for a moment when Inuyasha didn't answer her and regarded his shocked look with sleepy curiosity, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Why did you tell her about that! That had to be one of the most embarrassing moments of my childhood!"

"Calm down Inuyasha," Inukigo said while yawning and snuggling into him to get comfortable, "Get mad at me later, like when I'm awake enough to fight back."

"Ooi!" Inuyasha said. He was about to get mad at her but stopped himself. Inukigo had fallen asleep. Inuyasha sighed as he looked at her sleeping face. No matter, he'd get her back later. He smirked at the thought, he wasn't the only one who had had embarrassing childhood experiences. He was brought out of his thoughts when he noticed Kagome walking over towards them. She crouched down in front of him and looked from him to Inukigo quizzically.

"Is she asleep?" she asked quietly, not wanting to wake up the hanyou turned human in case she was indeed sleeping.

"Aa," Inuyasha replied in the same quiet tone. He then remembered what Inukigo had told her earlier and began to blush slightly, "Heh, and she said she wasn't going to go to sleep."

Kagome nodded, "What was it that you did to her? One minute she was thrashing around and then you bit her and she was really calm and leaning into you."

"I didn't bite her," Inuyasha explained, "It was a hold used to discipline unruly pups or pack members. After that I just made a low growl in my chest to calm her down. It's something that inu-youkai do to give comfort. It's too low for human ears to pick up. It's not really that hard." '_Especially since I've had a lot of practice with it in the past._' he added silently. Kagome didn't need to know that about Inukigo's childhood.

"Pack members?" Kagome asked curiously, never having heard him refer to having a pack before.

"Well, yeah. She is part of my pack, my family," he stopped for a moment before deciding to continue, "Just like you and the others are part of my pack."

"Really?" Kagome asked, eyes wide. She had never even considered Inuyasha thinking of them as his family, and here he was actually admitting to it.

He didn't reply, but did nod his head, a little embarrassed by his admission. Kagome looked at him thoughtfully for a moment before asking him another question.

"So, if you thought I was being unruly, you would do that to me?"

Inuyasha's head popped up, his eyes wide and a slight blush on his cheeks.

"N-no," he answered, shaking his head.

"Why not?" she asked, confused. Hadn't he just said that she was a pack member?

"N-not supposed to," Inuyasha stuttered, turning his head away slightly, "It's reserved for direct family members and…"

"And what?"

"M-mates," he answered quietly.

It took a moment for what he said to sink in, and when it did, Kagome's face turned red with embarrassment, and she stared down at her hands. She was not a direct family member, which meant that if he did that to her, it would mean that she was his mate. '_Ahh…me and my big mouth! How embarrassing!_'

"O-oh, umm yeah, well…i-it's good that she's getting some rest, after what happened," Kagome managed to get out, trying to change the subject.

"You should be getting some rest too. You were under that water longer, and you were the one that stopped breathing. You should have went to sleep as soon as it was safe for you to," Inuyasha said, the previous topic forgotten.

Kagome smiled at his poorly veiled concern, "I'm fine Inuyasha. I'm going to bed now actually. Thank you for being worried about me."

"I-It's no big deal." Inuyasha said, blushing slightly for a third time.

"Goodnight Inuyasha." Kagome said as she smiled and got up to walk away.

"Goodnight Kagome." He responded. He watched her walk away, and then looked back to his sister as he breathed a sigh of relief. He had come so close to losing them both and he vowed right there that Naraku would pay dearly for trying to bring harm to his family.

* * *

Ah crap...I'm so sorry!! I said that I'd have this chapter out in a week, and it's been well over a month. I hate it when that happens. I'll try to update more regularly from now on, but I can't promise anything. I have quite a bit of work to do, university midterms suck. Well, until next time (whenever that happens to be)!

Ja ne!!


	5. Chapter 5

Author note: I've decided to change this story just a tiny bit. It will now be taking place two years after Inuyasha is freed from the Goshinboku instead of one. I decided to do this because I wanted the characters just a little older, and I felt that one year wasn't enough to cover everything that happened in the anime. It isn't really that big of a change, but I just wanted to point it out. I'll be going back and changing time references that I've made previously. Now that that's settled, on with the story!!

* * *

**Chapter 5**

The night went by slowly for Inuyasha, who chose to remain awake for the entire night. Shortly after midnight, Miroku had awoken and offered to take over watching the camp so he could get some rest, but Inuyasha refused and told the monk to go back to sleep.

There was no way he could have slept anyway. His mind was racing with memories of the past that were brought to the surface by his human sister sleeping in his arms. How many times had he done this before? He didn't know, for there had been far too many times to count. He remembered the time after their mother had died, how on every full or new moon they would end up like this - the one of them with youkai blood trying to offer some feeling of comfort and safety to the other while their youkai blood waned. Of course, it wasn't just on the nights of the full moon that he had ended up with a sleeping Inukigo tucked in his arms. When they were first left on their own they had been like this every night, in his attempt to help her sleep when she feared the nightmares that would come when unconsciousness claimed her.

For months after their mother died the nightmares had been constant, happening nearly every night. He had taken to sleeping with her in his arms so that when she would wake he would wake with her, offering whatever comfort he could to her. It was at this time that he had begun to perfect the low, soothing growl deep in his chest that he had used earlier. He had done it instinctually the first time, and hadn't even been aware of what he was doing until she became relaxed against him. Once he had realized it's affect he had been very grateful for his inu-youkai blood at the times she would become distraught. '_But never once did she cry,_' he thought as he looked down into her peacefully sleeping face. '_I could tell that she was terrified, but she never allowed herself to cry, even at that age. All she would do was awake with a start and tremble in my arms. I know what she dreamt about, and I'm surprised that that's all she ever did._'

Inuyasha then thought about what she had told him about how the nightmares never truly went away. After those first few months, they had died down and eventually stopped altogether, or so he had thought. He wasn't really happy with that knowledge, but was glad that she had learned to live with them.

He continued to think back, and eventually came to the time when he and Inukigo had first heard of the Shikon no Tama. After hearing about its power, he had wanted to set out and claim it immediately, but Inukigo was dead set against it. She had taken more heed to the evil nature of the jewel and said that she wanted nothing to do with it, and had tried to talk him out of it as well. He had refused to listen to her, and she ended up following along. '_What would have happened if I had listened and not gone after the jewel? Would things have been better?_' Inuyasha wondered. He happened to take a quick glance at Kagome, and a small smile crossed his face as he shook his head. '_No. If things hadn't turned out this way, I would have never met Kagome, or any of the others. Hell, Inukigo and I would probably be dead by now._'

Inukigo may have stayed with him, but she had flat out refused to help him steal the jewel from Kikyou when they found her. Not once did she ever encounter Kikyou with him, but she had always been nearby, sometimes even in plain sight, just in case his life was threatened. She had been the one to pry him off the trees that Kikyou had pinned him to by his clothes. Every time that happened she begged him to give up, fearing that Kikyou would one day lose her patience with him and take his life. He saw the fear and worry in her eyes all those times, and even now hated being the reason for her worries.

Over time, circumstances had changed, and he had begun to grow close to Kikyou, enjoying her company, and all thoughts of stealing the Shikon no Tama from her had left his mind. There had been times when they would spend nearly the entire day together, just sitting in comfortable silence enjoying each other's presence. As time passed, those moments had become more and more frequent, and he spent more and more time with Kikyou while Inukigo…wait…'_What did Inukigo do during the time I spent with Kikyou?_'

It was something he had never given thought to before, and his brow furrowed as he wracked his brain trying to come up with something. It was in vain, for he could not remember ever knowing what Inukigo did while he was with Kikyou. He couldn't even think of anything that she would do because before meeting Kikyou they had always been together. Now that he thought back on it, Inukigo had become increasingly distant towards him as he got closer to Kikyou, he had just never noticed it at the time. He was quickly becoming confused. '_What caused her to start acting that way?_'

Inuyasha thought back to the day that he had agreed to become human for Kikyou. He had gone and told Inukigo immediately in his excitement. For a split second he had thought he smelled sadness from her, but it had disappeared just as quickly and she had smiled and told him how happy she was that he had found someone to be with. Now that he thought about it, her smile that day had seemed very forced, and that sadness had not been something he imagined. '_Why was she sad that day?_' he wondered as he looked down into his sister's face. He stared at her for a few moments before his eyes widened in realization.

"You…you thought I was abandoning you, didn't you?" he whispered.

'_That was it, wasn't it? You thought I was going to leave you all alone. You never even said anything about it, just pretended that nothing was wrong for my sake. I was so caught up in everything that was going on that I never noticed. Oh, sis, I'm so sorry._'

Inuyasha hugged Inukigo to him as tightly as he could without harming her, making his silent apology to his sleeping sister.

Inukigo awoke in layers. The first thing she realized was that it was very warm, and the feeling of being held in someone's arms. Then there was the feeling of those arms squeezing her very tightly, and the sensation of not being able to breathe. When she came fully awake she realized it was Inuyasha who was squeezing her, and he was so caught up in what he was doing that he didn't notice that she was awake.

"Ooi, Inuyasha. Ease up a little. I can't breathe." she said quietly.

Inuyasha heard her and jumped slightly, then relaxed his grip on her. Inukigo pulled back to look at him, concern etched in her face.

"What was that about? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong. Just thinking."

Inukigo gave him a dry look.

"Yeah right. I know you better than that. What were you thinking about that made you hug me so tightly?"

"Keh! You looking too deep into it. I'll say it again - nothing's wrong." he stated, turning his head away from her.

"Inuyasha…"

Inuyasha turned his eyes to her, and the annoyed look on her face made him gulp.

"What were you thinking about?" she asked again, her voice serious.

Inuyasha was silent for a moment before he decided to answer.

"I was just thinking about…the time before I was sealed by Kikyou…" he trailed off, then turned to face her, staring her straight in the eyes, "Inukigo, at that time, did I make you sad?"

Inukigo's eyes widened in shock and she quickly turned her face away. '_Does he know?_' she wondered. She didn't want to tell him.

'_He'll feel so guilty. He'll blame everything on himself just like he always does._'

"What do you mean?"

Inuyasha knew that she was faking her ignorance. Her scent and body language told him that she was nervous and hiding something. Not only that, but she had looked away from him when he asked the question. Instead of calling her on it, he decided to humour her and explained.

"When I was with Kikyou…you became distant towards me, almost avoiding me sometimes. I can remember smelling sadness from you, but you would always cover it up with false happiness. Tell me, did I hurt you then?"

Inukigo looked back at him for a moment before dropping her head again. There was no point in denying it. He knew already, and would be able to tell if she lied anyway.

"Yes." she answered in a whisper that even Inuyasha had a hard time hearing. But he heard.

"I'm sorry."

Inukigo jerked her head up and glared at him.

"Stop apologizing to me. I've had enough of you making yourself feel guilty for everything." She whispered harshly. Her voice then softened as she continued, "I don't blame you for anything Inuyasha. What kind of sister would I be if I got angry at you for having feelings for someone and wanting to be with them?" she questioned as a small smile crossed her face, although Inuyasha could tell there was very little happiness to it.

Inukigo leaned against Inuyasha's chest again, rested her head over his heart.

"You know, you're wrong." Inukigo said quietly, causing Inuyasha to direct a confused look down at her.

"What do you mean?"

"You said that I covered up my sadness with false happiness. That's not true. My happiness was very real. I was glad that you found someone you loved that loved you in return. That you found someone to spend the rest of your life with. Yes, I was sad that you were moving on and leaving me behind, but I was happy, knowing that you would be happy. I guess you could say that the whole thing was bittersweet."

"I wasn't leaving you behind," Inuyasha said quietly as he hung his head.

Inukigo looked up at him to meet his gaze.

"Maybe not intentionally Inuyasha, but you had chosen to live a life that I couldn't rightly be a part of. You would have been completely human. You could have had a completely normal life, but not with me in it. Not with a hanyou as a sister," She dropped her gaze, then forced his chin up so she could tuck her head underneath it. "I…I was going to leave that day."

"What?! Why?!"

"Inuyasha, be quiet. I was going to leave, so you wouldn't have a life being know as a brother to a hanyou. Being there, I would have been a constant reminder to others of what you once were. Do you think that they would have treated you much better, knowing that you had once been a hanyou. With me gone, they would have eventually forgotten. I would have been alone, but I didn't care. I was happy knowing that at least one of us would live a happy life."

"What makes you think that I would have wanted you to! I wouldn't have cared what anyone thought of me having a hanyou for a sister, I would have wanted you with me! You're my sister! I will always want you in my life!" Inuyasha yelled as he grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her away from him so he could look her in the eye. The look of tremendous sadness in her eyes almost had him pulling her back, but he needed to see her face.

"Inuyasha!" she hissed at him lowly, "Calm down. There's no need to wake the others," she then went back to whispering softly, "It was my choice. I didn't want you to be tied back because of your connection to me."

Inukigo lowered her head slightly, and Inuyasha noticed her gulp and take a deep breath as she prepared herself to continue.

"On that day, the day that Kikyou sealed you, I was on my way to say goodbye to you. Then, I heard her scream your name and fire the arrow. When I made it to the tree, you were already asleep. I was so angry, I was about to kill Kikyou on the spot, but she was nearly dead then anyway, and I knew that she could seal me as well. Then she died and I was at a total loss as to what I should do. Keade mentioned a monk that lived deep in the forest a few days away from the village who was just as skilled with sealing spells as Kikyou, and I took off. I never anticipated how hard it would be to find the monk. Apparently, he was also very skilled in concealing spells. That added to the fact that the forest was huge made it extremely difficult for me to track him, even with my hanyou senses."

Inukigo quieted for a moment before leaning into Inuyasha seeking comfort. Not just for her emotional pain, but the physical as well. The pain in her arms was beginning to come back. He gave it readily and waited for her to continue.

"It was two years before I found him." she snuggled deeper as Inuyasha looked at her in shock.

'_Two years?_'

"In that time, I learned exactly what it was like, to be completely alone," Inuyasha felt her stiffen slightly, "Gods, I was so scared."

"Inukigo…"

"As soon as I was on my own, the nightmares started up again. Any time that I tried to sleep, images of ofukuro dying and you being sealed would plague my mind. Of course, I never had much of a chance to sleep anyway. I was always running. Youkai were after me constantly. Some that were natural enemies would even team up just to come after me. There were so many times that they would corner me, and I was sure that…that I was about to die."

Inuyasha heard the crack in Inukigo's voice and held her tighter as she gave a mirthless chuckle.

"Listen to me. I'm going on and on like a little pup. Gods, I'm such a weakling, being hung up on this, and spilling it all out to you."

"Hey, no you're not. You've never been a weakling. If you were weak, you wouldn't have survived. You wouldn't be here right now. So stop thinking it."

Inuyasha smiled a little, even though Inukigo couldn't see it.

"Baka. You're the one who keeps telling me to stop putting myself down about being a hanyou. What about you? I told you about things that were troubling me, and you thought no less of me. I think that you're worse than I am, always thinking that you're weak."

"But, I…" she started, but Inuyasha cut her off.

"But nothing. I know what you were going to say, that you admitted you were scared. That you opened up so much to me about the time when you were afraid. Those things don't make you weak."

"Eh? Inuyasha…"

"I know, I know," he said, cutting her off again, "I'm the last person that you would ever expect to hear that from. But, Kagome once told me that there's nothing wrong with talking about things that are troubling you. She said that it helps ease the pain of dealing with it alone, and I think that she's right about that."

'_So that's why it didn't take much persuading to get you to talk to me, well after that slap you gave me. I was wondering about that._'

"I'm here for you Inukigo, and all the others are here too. You're not alone anymore."

"Inuyasha…" Inukigo said quietly, her voice cracking slightly.

"It's alright, you don't need to scared like that anymore, imouto."

Inukigo froze, and then very nearly burst into tears, but managed to catch it with a dry sob. She was cursing herself at the moment. Being human meant that she had none of the control over her emotions that she normally had. It was taking everything she had to not start crying at Inuyasha's reassuring words.

'_Damn it. Why did I have to be human **now**? And what the hell is with Inuyasha? He's never acted this way before. He's being open, and considerate. Normally he just keeps quiet because he doesn't know what to say or do. He's matured so much. It must be from all the time he's spent with Kagome and the others. Damn, why did he have to be so caring **now**?! I can't keep my emotions in check while I'm human. I don't think I'll be able to hold myself together much longer._'

Inukigo was on the verge of a break down, and she knew it. Inuyasha knew it as well. He could hear her cut-off sobs and ragged breathing that were caused by her attempts to keep from crying. He could plainly smell the salty tears that were just barely held at bay in her eyes. He could also sense that she was in slight pain.

'_The stuff that Kagome gave her must be wearing off._'

"A-Aniki…" Inukigo whispered.

It was now Inuyasha's turn to freeze. It was very rare for Inukigo to refer to him as 'aniki.' If she ever called him 'older brother,' she always said 'onii-chan.' It was really her way to humour him when he started bragging about being the big brother, since she used the most childish and least respectful term for it. But when she called him 'aniki,' he knew that she was serious. She had only ever used that term when she was extremely distressed. It was like an unspoken plea to him that screamed, '_Help me!_' when she was unable to say the words.

'_She's trying so hard not to cry. She doesn't want to do it, because she still believes that I will think her weak for it. That's why she's asking for help - she's in pain, and doesn't know what she should do to make it stop._'

"It's alright, imouto, you can cry. I won't say anything about it."

"I-I don't want to." Inukigo replied stubbornly.

Inuyasha scoffed at her response.

"Yeah, right. Sure you don't. Baka, I can smell it. The tears are all but rolling down your cheeks. I told you, it's alright. I won't say anything."

As soon as the words left his mouth, the tears started flowing, and at the moment there was nothing that could be done to stop them.

"A-Arigatou, aniki," Inukigo whispered brokenly as she buried her face in his shoulder.

After that, she cried silently, giving only the occasional sniffle or deep, gasping breath. Inuyasha never said a word, just curled his body around hers in an attempt to shield her from the world. He could feel her shaking with the effort it was taking her to remain silent, so he guided her head to his shoulder, lay his atop of hers, and rubbed her back, just like he had done many times before when they were younger.

'_I suppose it's better that she's quiet,_' Inuyasha thought, '_I know that she wouldn't want the others to be worried about her, or see her cry like this._'

On impulse, he happened to look up to glance over at his sleeping companions. Only, they weren't sleeping. He managed to fight off his shock and not stop what he was doing so Inukigo didn't notice, because looking straight back at him were the concerned eyes of Kagome, Sango, and Miroku. Shippou and Kirara were the only ones who remained oblivious to the going ons, but he guessed that Kirara was just ignoring the situation. If the humans were awake, there was no way that she wouldn't be. At first he turned a little red in the face with embarrassment from being caught in his current position, but that quickly turned to anger. How long had they been awake, and how much had they heard? That conversation was meant to be private, not something for all of them to hear. His anger quickly dissipated though, when he realised that it was most likely his fault that they were awake. There had been a few points in the conversation where he had been anything but quiet. He sighed then looked at Kagome, who was sitting up and looking right back at him. The extreme look of concern on her face told him that she had heard a very large portion of the talk he and Inukigo had had. The look in her eyes also told him that she was contemplating comforting her friend. His assumptions proved to be correct when she made to remove the sleeping bag from her legs so she could get up. Thankfully, she was still looking right at him, so she noticed when he slowly shook his head. Inukigo took no notice, just thinking that Inuyasha was rubbing his chin against her head. Kagome immediately complied, and remained seated on her sleeping bag.

Inuyasha sent her an appreciative look, then returned his attention to consoling his sister. Inukigo seemed as though she was calming down, but he knew that in her current state, now that she had started crying, it could take some time before she would be able to stop.

Only a few moments passed, when Inuyasha glanced to the sky. To his relief, he saw the first signs of sunrise on the horizon. He rested his chin on Inukigo's shoulder, placing his mouth close to her ear.

"The sun is rising." he whispered.

Inukigo nodded her head in agreement, confirming that she already knew this because she could feel her youkai blood awakening. '_She'll most likely stop crying as soon as the sun rises._'

Inuyasha could sense it in her as well, then panicked when he saw that the others were still watching them. '_Kuso, she'll know that they heard and saw everything._' He quickly mouthed the words 'go back to sleep' in hopes that they would understand. They looked at him strangely for a few seconds, before Miroku caught on and silently explained what he meant to the two girls. Inuyasha sighed in relief when all three of them went back to their previous sleeping positions. '_Good. I hope that they're good at pretending to be asleep._'

Inuyasha turned his gaze back to the sky, just in time to see the first rays of sunlight peek over the horizon. Inukigo stiffened against him, and he watched as her hair bled white, and her ears returned to their normal form on top of her head. Although he couldn't see it, he knew that her other demon traits had obviously returned as well.

Another thing that he noticed had returned were her emotional blocks, because as soon as the transformation was over, she took a deep breath, let out a shaky exhale, and that was the end of the tears. She let out a contented sigh, and was once again completely composed, the only evidence of her crying being the semi-dried tears on her cheeks.

"Feel better now?" Inuyasha asked quietly.

"Much." she answered in a somewhat steady voice.

"Good."

"Arigatou, Inuyasha."

"Don't mention it." he replied as he pulled her away from him so make sure she was really alright. One look into her eyes told him that she was still in pain over what she had just shared with him. She was usually better at hiding things from him, but she hadn't had the time to put up any barriers. He looked at her sympathetically before raising his arm to wipe the moisture from her cheeks with the sleeve of his white under kimono.

"Did you ever plan to tell me any of that?" Inuyasha asked as he went about checking her injuries to make sure they were healing properly again.

Inukigo sighed before she answered.

"Honestly, I don't know. It's not really something I want to relive."

Inuyasha nodded in understanding.

"Still, you shouldn't hide it so much." Inuyasha said softly.

"You're one to talk." Inukigo said crankily while sending him a half-hearted glare.

Inuyasha rose both eyebrows in surprise and question.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. Most of my problems are also your problems. You hide them as well, so don't act as though I'm the only one who does it."

"You don't know what you're talkin' about. I already told you, I'm over that stuff." he replied, knowing immediately what she was referring to.

"Bull."

"What?"

"Bull. Shit."

"I told you…"

"And I'm telling you - you're lying. I said before that you hid it better than I did, which is true. Being able to hide it well doesn't mean that you've gotten over it."

Inuyasha started growling and glaring at her, but said nothing, proving that Inukigo was right. Inukigo saw that he was quickly getting angry with her, and decided that she should put a stop to it. She didn't particularly feel like dealing with him if he got cranky later on.

"Look, Inuyasha. Let's just stop this, okay? Arguing over it won't get us anywhere. I, for one, do not want to be in a bad mood for the rest of the day. We'll talk about it later."

"Huh?" Inuyasha said, so confused by the sudden turn of Inukigo's attitude that all his anger was forgotten. When he realized what she had done he became slightly irritated. "How do you do that?"

"What, make you forget that you're angry with me?" she asked innocently as she smirked at him, "It's not so hard, since I've had a lot of practice. As for how it's done, that's for me to know, and you to find out."

Inuyasha scowled at her, but there was no heat behind it, and Inukigo chuckled lightly.

"Forget it. It's not important. Now," she said as she stood up, "I'd say it's about time we got ready to head out." She then turned around and looked at the rest of the group. "C'mon guys, it's time to stop pretending to be asleep and get your lazy asses up so we can get ready to go!"

Instantly, three pairs of eyes shot open and stared at the female hanyou that was smirking cockily at them, with her arms folded across her chest. Even Inuyasha had a disbelieving look on his face. How had she known? As if she could read everyone's minds Inukigo laughed lightly as she explained.

"My hearing isn't completely shot as a human. I could hear you guys shuffling around just before the sun rose. I don't know how long you all were awake, but am I correct in assuming that you all heard most of what Inuyasha and I said?"

All three looked at her sadly and nodded. Kagome was the first to speak.

"Gomen ne, Inukigo-chan. I know that you don't like sharing your past, much like Inuyasha," she said, sending a gentle look to Inuyasha that had him blushing slightly before turning back to Inukigo, "You're not angry with us, are you?"

Inukigo looked thoughtful for a few moments before turning her amber gaze to Kagome and smiling gently.

"No, I'm not angry with you. It's true that I don't like to talk about the…harsher aspects of my past, and this wasn't really the way that I wanted you to find out. But, there is nothing to be done about it now. You heard, and there is nothing that can change that."

Kagome got up from her sleeping bag and walked over to the taller girl and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Inukigo-chan…you know that if you ever need to talk to someone about the things that are bothering you, you can always come to one of us about it, right?" Kagome asked worriedly, fearing she'd get the same dismissal that Inuyasha usually gave her when posed with that question.

She was relieved when another small smile graced Inukigo's face.

"Arigatou, Kagome. I'm glad to know that."

The entire camp was silent for a few brief moments, before Inuyasha got annoyed and decided to voice his irritation.

"Keh! Why is everybody just sitting around doing nothing?! We've got things to do, so somebody hurry up and make breakfast to we can get going!"

Everyone knew what he was trying to do of course, and it worked like a charm. Kagome and Sango went about digging through Kagome's bag for breakfast, while Miroku set out to light the fire which had died out over night. Shippou, who had awakened at Inuyasha's 'Keh!' walked by Inukigo, saying good morning and asking how she was feeling, before hopping over to see what Kagome was doing.

Breakfast was prepared and eaten in record time, and the group of shard hunters resumed their quest once again.

* * *

It was two days after the night of the full moon, and Inukigo was currently sitting against a tree at the edge of the group's small campsite, sighing happily as she flexed her fingers. It had taken two full days for her hands to heal completely. In that time, they had not run into Naraku's new incarnation, or any other demons for that manner. Inukigo was a little disappointed that they hadn't encountered the demoness that almost took Kagome's life, but she supposed it was a good thing that they hadn't, seeing as how she was mending. Now that she was fully healed she was itching to dig her claws into the youkai woman's face for what she had nearly done.

'_Bitch better show up soon. I'm getting impatient._'

Inukigo decided to calm her thoughts, and instead occupied herself with observing her fellow travellers.

Inuyasha was fighting with Shippou - as usual - over something stupid. Kagome was nearby, trying to read one of her strange books, but failing due to her brother's increasingly loud and distracting yelling. She watched Kagome's face, and noticed that her right eyebrow was ticking slightly, an almost unnoticeable movement that usually didn't mean anything good for her brother.

'_Here it comes. 3, 2, 1,…_'

"Inuyasha, osuwari!"

"Gah!" SLAM

'_And there it is._'

Inukigo shook her head, laughing silently to herself, before a cry of 'Hentai!' and a loud smack drew her attention to the other dysfunctional couple of the group.

She looked on in amusement as Miroku rubbed his throbbing cheek and Sango fumed, threatening more bodily harm if he dared to touch her again.

"But I swear Sango, I didn't do it intentionally! My hand has a mind of it's own."

"Shut up, you damn pervert. I don't want to hear your excuses." Sango ground out as she got up and moved away from him. Inukigo's eyes followed her, and then widened in shock at what she caught a glimpse of. Sango was…smiling? What the hell?!

'_The little pretender! She enjoys the attention that he gives her. Well, I'll be damned._'

Inukigo shook her head again and moved her hand to pet the untransformed Kirara, who was sleeping in her lap.

'_I swear, this has got to be the most messed up group of people in all of Japan._'

Inukigo's thought had her smiling.

She turned her attention back to Kagome and Inuyasha. Kagome was once again reading her book, and Inuyasha was now sulking at the base of a tree. Inukigo then suddenly remembered a very important conversation that she had mentioned two days before.

'_Shit, how did I forget that? My memory must be totally shot._'

She sighed before picking up Kirara from her lap to lay her on the ground, then stood up and walked over to Kagome. Kagome was so wrapped up in her reading that she didn't notice Inukigo, and started when the female hanyou squatted down directly in front of her.

"Hey, Kagome? How about you and I go for a walk?"

Kagome was confused by the request, and tilted her head slightly in question. Inukigo recognized the questioning look, and explained.

"I needed to talk to you, remember?"

Kagome's eyes narrowed slightly in thought as she tried to remember what Inukigo was talking about, then widened when the realization hit her.

"Yeah, I remember. Sure."

"Alright then." Inukigo replied, standing up. She waited for Kagome to put her things away, then came to stand beside her.

"So where are we going?" Kagome asked.

"Nowhere in particular," Inukigo replied, and then started to walk towards the trail that they had used to enter the campsite, "This way I guess. We'll see if we can find a good spot to talk in private."

"Okay."

The conversation between the two girls didn't really surprise Miroku and Sango, they remembered Inukigo mentioning it before so they didn't really pay them any mind, except to wave back at Kagome when she waved at them. Inuyasha, however, was an entirely different story. He hadn't known about this, and wasn't too happy about both his sister and Kagome wandering off while one of Naraku's incarnations was still running around somewhere. He got up, and began to make his way over to them, but Inukigo saw him and stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Nuh uh. You stay right there Inuyasha. Kagome and I are going for a walk to discuss some things. You're not stopping us, and you're not coming, so just stay where you are."

"But…"

"No buts. I'm completely healed now, so you don't have to worry about us being attacked, I'll be able to take care of it. If we really need you, you'll know. Don't worry, okay?"

"Keh, I'm not worried." Inuyasha huffed, turning his head away and stuffing his arms in his sleeves.

Inukigo looked at Kagome and both fought to hold in their laughter at his little act. Inukigo made sure to get herself under control before she spoke again.

"Okay then. We're gonna go now, and we'll let you know if we need you in the unlikely event that we run into something that I can't handle on my own, okay?"

"Fine." he said grumpily, going back to the tree that he had previously been occupying.

Inukigo smiled and shook her head, then motioned with her hand for Kagome to follow her and both girls set off into the woods

Inukigo and Kagome walked for about twenty minutes in relative silence, mostly because Kagome was so caught up in wondering what Inukigo wanted to talk about. Inukigo finally settled on a secluded little opening in the trees that was far enough from the trail to prevent any travellers that may pass by from seeing or hearing them.

The two girls sat down and got comfortable, and remained silent before Kagome couldn't wait any longer.

"Alright, Inukigo-chan. What did you want to talk to me about?"

Inukigo sighed. This wasn't really a conversation that she ever thought she'd have with someone.

"Kagome, I brought you out here because there are some very important thing that I need to talk with you about. Things involving my brother."

"Inuyasha?"

Inukigo nodded before taking a deep breath and getting started.

"Kagome, I'm sorry, but I have to be blunt. Tell me, do you love my brother?"

"Eh? I-I…I mean…umm…" Kagome stuttered, her face turning a bright shade of red.

"I think that answers my question," Inukigo said with a hint of laughter in her voice, "Although I would have preferred for you to actually say the words."

"I-I love him." Kagome whispered after a few moments.

"That's better," Inukigo said smiling warmly, "I needed to hear you say it before I had this talk with you. You see, there is something that I need to explain to you."

"What would that be?"

"The wonderful process of youkai courting, canine youkai courting to be exact." Inukigo stated, with a large smirk on her face.

"Nani? Why would you need to explain something like that to me?" Kagome asked.

"It's very simple Kagome, my brother is courting you."

"He is?! B-but he…"

"Yes, I know, he does a lot of things that make you think that he would never do that, but believe me he is. I'm his sister, I know these things."

"O-okay."

"Now, I need you to pay very close attention because this is important, okay?" Inukigo asked gently, placing a hand on the startled girl's shoulder to make sure she had her attention.

"I understand."

"Alright. For starters, courting is divided into two stages. The first stage, or initial courting, would probably be closest to what you would refer to as becoming friends. After the male has determined from a female's scent that he is interested in her, he will stay close by her side in order to imprint himself on her. This will involve protecting her and providing for her as well as putting his scent on her and warding off other males."

Kagome's eyes widened as she took in the information.

"N-no way. He's been like that around me since I've met him! I mean, there are a lot of times that he tells me that he hates my scent, but the first time I ever saw him turn human he told me that was a lie. I don't know what to think, he's got me so confused."

"Him telling you that he hated your scent was his own stubborn way of him covering up the feelings he has for you. He didn't want to let you know because he was embarrassed. Probably even a little scared of what he was feeling. Don't dare tell him I said that. Now, I really need to go into the 'warding off other males' part."

"Why is that?"

"I know about this Kouga guy. From what I heard the way you act with him has Inuyasha doubting that you have any feelings for him."

"Inuyasha is always doubting me. I keep telling him that Kouga-kun is just my friend but he just doesn't get it," Kagome pouted.

"Whoa, wait, Kouga-'**_kun_**'? Okay, this may be a little harder than I thought," Inukigo said, scratching her head.

"What do you mean?"

"Kagome, in initial courting, the claim that the male is trying to make is not concrete. It can be challenged by another male. This Kouga guy knows that Inuyasha is trying to make a claim and he's trying to challenge it."

"But, both Inuyasha and Kouga-kun know that I only think of Kouga-kun as a friend."

Inukigo shook her head.

"That's just it. They **_don't_** know that. You see, females need to be **_very _**direct with males or they seem indecisive. Since you let Kouga make advances on you to be nice to him and not hurt his feelings, you're making both of them think that you're considering dropping Inuyasha and accepting Kouga."

"I-I didn't know that. I had no idea," Kagome said, looking down at her lap.

"Yeah, I knew that you didn't. I explained to Inuyasha that you didn't mean it because you had no clue about what was going on."

"What can I do to fix it?" Kagome asked without hesitation.

Inukigo smiled at Kagome's enthusiasm.

'_This girl was definitely made for you aniki._'

"Well, for starters, drop the 'kun'. I know you want to be his friend, but for the time being you cannot be excessively friendly towards him. Do not let him touch you, and reject any advanced he makes towards you."

"What kind of advances?"

"If he calls you his woman or anything else that implies that you belong to him you need to tell him the difference until he gets it through his head. Basically you need to tell him 'I don't want you so leave me alone,' although when dealing with a wolf you'll definitely need to be a bit more forceful than that."

"Okay."

"There's one more thing Kagome. If Inuyasha tries to physically drive Kouga off you have to let him. Don't stop him and let Kouga escape by using the rosary."

"But I don't want Kouga-k…Kouga to be hurt because of me."

Inukigo smiled at her correction. "Gomen, Kagome, but that's how it needs to be. Inuyasha has a right to defend the claim that he has on you. And protecting Kouga is seen as accepting him as well. The female is actually supposed to stay out of it altogether."

"I understand. I'll stay out of it."

"Good girl. Now, after the initial courting, there is the marking. After the male and female have been around each other for awhile, the time varies from a few weeks to a few months, the male will ask the female to become his mate. If she agrees he will mark her, and in inu youkai courting, the female will mark him back."

"Mark?"

"Yup, it's a bite mark that is made in the juncture of your neck and left shoulder," Inukigo explained, reaching over and tapping the area she was referring to with one finger, "Usually it's just the male that marks the female, but inu youkai females mark their males as well."

"So that means I'll have to mark Inuyasha? How will I be able to do that? I don't have any fangs."

"You'll do fine. You'll just have to bite hard enough to draw blood and leave a mark. It will be harder for you to do without fangs, I admit, but you still have to do it. It's necessary in inu youkai mating."

"Why is inu youkai mating different?"

"Inu youkai males only take one mate, whereas many youkai males will take multiple mates. An inu youkai pair will mate for life, unless one of them dies, then the one that lives is free to take another mate if they choose to. Although there are some that undergo a soul bonding and will never take another mate as long as they live."

"Wow, they're very committed."

"You sound surprised."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to sound that way. It's just so different from how humans do things, that's all."

Inukigo nodded in agreement.

"I know humans aren't like that. The bonds formed between some youkai pairs are much stronger than anything you could ever imagine."

"Does that mean that a bond formed between Inuyasha and I won't be all that strong, since we're not youkai?"

Inukigo had to smile at Kagome's concern.

"No, it doesn't mean that at all. It depends on the individuals involved how strong the bond becomes."

Inukigo was happy to see Kagome's spirits lift immediately.

"Alright. Well, what happens after the marking?"

"Oh, I'm not sure what you would call it. The male and female get closer to one another, spend time alone together."

"That sounds like dating in my time."

"What do humans do when they're 'dating'?"

"Well, we do what you've already talked about. They touch more, like holding hands and putting their arms around each other. They kiss, and they do nice things for each other. Stuff like that."

"Youkai don't act that way, but it's safe to say that Inuyasha will since he is half human. That stage goes on for awhile, since the male and female need to know for certain that they love each other since they will be mates for the rest of their lives."

"I'm confused. You said that the two phases were defined by the marking, but Inuyasha and I act sort of like we're in the second phase and he hasn't marked me, or even made it clear that he wants to do that," Kagome said with at slight blush on her face.

"I know. He has his reasons for doing that, and it's not really my place to explain them to you. It's better that Inuyasha do that when he talks to you about it."

"He's going to talk with me about it?" Kagome asked with an embarrassed squeak in her voice.

Inukigo had to resist the urge to laugh.

"Yeah, I convinced him to talk to you about it when you return to your time. But don't talk anymore about this until then okay?"

"Alright, I understand. What happens after the second phase of courting?"

"After the courting is complete, then comes the mating. There's a whole ritual behind that, but I won't get into that until the time comes. At the moment it isn't really important. And that's it, unless you have some questions."

"Well," Kagome asked, fidgeting with the hem of her skirt, "When Inuyasha has his talk with me, is there a particular way that I have to respond to him to let him know how I feel?"

"No, just listen to him and support him. I'm sure you know that he hates to have to talk about his feelings," Kagome nodded, "Although there is one thing that you can do that will put any insecurities he has to rest."

"What would that be?"

"Come a little bit closer."

Kagome did as she was told and kneeled directly in front of her friend. Inukigo leaned in and surprised Kagome by rubbing her cheek against her own. Kagome stayed absolutely motionless, unsure of how she was supposed to respond. Inukigo felt Kagome stiffen and chuckled to herself before pulling back and smiling at the younger girl.

"Sorry that I startled you Kagome," Inukigo giggled, "I just thought that it would be better to demonstrate it rather that just tell you."

"What was that?"

"That gesture is something that is very important among inu youkai. It is a display of affection that is only allowed to be used by mates and close family members. There are more intimate actions, but I doubt that you would feel comfortable using those right now. You can use the one I just showed you if Inuyasha starts to clam up while he's talking, it always works when I use it. Just hug him and do what I just did to you until he responds. And if he ends up doing it to you instead, don't freeze and just sit there like you did just now."

"What do I do?"

"Just do the same thing back. It's pretty simple. Anything else, Kagome?"

"No, I don't think so," she then lowered her head to look at the ground, "I can't believe that he's courting me and that he wants me as his mate. I never thought, it's just the way he acts with…"

"Kikyou?" Inukigo sighed when Kagome nodded, "Listen Kagome, I'll tell you something that I don't think that even Inuyasha realizes. I was there when he was courting Kikyou, and I can tell you that what he feels for you goes much deeper than what he ever felt for her."

"Really?"

"Yeah. When he's with you he shows his true self, because he knows that you accept that. When he was with Kikyou, it was almost as if he was hiding part of himself, because he knew that Kikyou would not accept the demon in him. Believe me, seeing Inuyasha act the way he did around her sometimes was scary." Inukigo said as she shivered.

Kagome giggled at her friend. "Arigatou, Inukigo-chan."

"Don't worry about it. Now I think we should head back. I'm sure Inuyasha is probably ready to come tearing through the trees after us by now."

"Yeah, you're probably right." Kagome giggled.

Both girls got up from their seats on the forest floor, but before they started walking, Inukigo turned and spoke again.

"Oh yeah, there's one other thing."

"What?"

"Please try not to be too offended from now on when my brother calls you a bitch."

"Why not?" Kagome asked.

"Think about it for a minute Kagome. What kind of a demon is my brother?"

"A dog demon…ohhhh…"

Inukigo grinned.

"Get it?"

"Yeah. I should have seen that one coming."

"It's alright. It's natural that you would take that as an insult. My advice for dealing with my brother's behaviour is to think more like a dog demon. It'll probably make things a whole lot easier."

"I'll keep it in mind."

Inukigo smiled and turned back around, and both girls slowly made their way back to camp and their companions.

They were halfway back when Kagome froze and stopped in her tracks. Inukigo stopped and looked back at Kagome with concern.

"Kagome? Daijoubou ka?"

"I'm alright. It's just that there are two jewel shards coming toward us fast. It's…" Inukigo cut her off by holding up her hand and then sniffed, not really liking what she smelled.

"I smell a…"

"OII!! KAGOME!!"

* * *

Three guesses as to who just showed up. LOL

Please review people. I'm not gonna hold off updating waiting for reviews (it takes me long enough as it is), but it would be really nice to hear from people. Hopefully the next chapter won't be so long in coming (I guarantee that you'll all like it). Until next time!

Ja ne!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Last time:

Both girls got up from their seats on the forest floor and slowly made their way back to camp and their companions.

They were halfway back when Kagome froze and stopped in her tracks. Inukigo stopped and looked back at Kagome with concern.

"Kagome? Daijoubou ka?"

"I'm alright. It's just that there are two jewel shards coming toward us fast. It's…" Inukigo cut her off by holding up her hand and then sniffed, not really liking what she smelled.

"I smell a…"

"OII!! KAGOME!!"

This time:

No sooner had those words been yelled from somewhere in the forest, a person sized tornado, which Inukigo looked at oddly since it seemed to have a mind of it's own, came flying through the trees and headed directly for them. Just as Inukigo was about to raise her guard, the whirlwind dissipated, revealing the well-toned body of the young wolf demon prince, Kouga. She stood up straight and crossed her arms in a very Inuyasha-like pose.

"Wolf," she finished, in an irritated voice that matched her irritated look when said wolf walked right by her as though she wasn't even there, and went straight for Kagome. She then watched as two more wolf demons appeared from the tree line. They looked like they had been run to death, and about pass out from lack of oxygen, but they managed to say hello to her, and she smiled and waved back at them.

"Kagome," Kouga said gently as he grabbed her hands, "I thought I picked up your scent. Where's inukuro? He'd better be taking better care of you than to let you wander off on your own."

Kagome looked at him nervously for a few seconds, not really sure what to do. She cast a glance over Kouga's shoulder to look at Inukigo, who was giving her an expectant look. Kagome's features hardened as she grew determined, and instead of giving Kouga the false, happy smile that she usually did, she pulled her hands from Kouga's and moved back a step before answering.

"I'm fine Kouga."

Inukigo grinned, proud that Kagome had remembered to make that little change.

"Inuyasha isn't very far way, besides, I'm not out here by myself."

Kouga looked a little startled when Kagome moved away from him, but decided to ignore it, and went to grab her again. He became thoroughly confused when she stepped away from him again. Inukigo was biting the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing out loud at the expression on his face. Kouga decided to let it drop for the time being.

"If you not here by yourself, then who are you out here with?"

Inukigo's mouth dropped open in shock. She thought he had just ignored her, but it turned out that he had been so caught up in getting to Kagome as quickly as possible, that he actually hadn't noticed her there.

'_Doesn't this guy have a nose? Or eyes for that matter._'

She looked over to the two other wolves as if to ask 'is this guy for real?', and the two of them put their heads in their hands and turned away in embarrassment.

Kagome was shocked as well. Instead of answering him, she just pointed over his shoulder at the hanyou that was still staring at him weirdly. Kouga turned to see what she was pointing at, and not recognizing the hanyou woman as one of the regular travellers in Kagome's group, decided to give voice to his curiosity.

"Who the hell are you?"

Inukigo's face immediately darkened at his remark, and her eyes narrowed slightly in anger at his demanding tone.

'_Don't think you can order me around, prick._'

She was about to open her mouth to tell him just that, but closed it again when he approached her, sniffing curiously. She left him alone, not really sure what he was up to. He kept advancing, but Inukigo held her ground and started letting off a low warning growl, which Kouga ignored. He drew closer, until he was just inches away from Inukigo's neck. He was still sniffing, and his attention had caused her to stop growling and a slight flush crept onto her face.

'_Wha-what is he doing?_'

Then he stopped suddenly and straightened to look her in the eye.

"Ooi…" he said in a slow voice that had Inukigo and Kagome confused, then he continued.

"…You smell like dog-turd."

Inukigo froze for a moment before the words registered in her head. The flush on her face changed from embarrassment to anger and her mouth curled up in a snarl, baring her teeth at him, just before she exploded.

"What…WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!!!!!"

* * *

"Where the hell are they! They should be back by now!"

"Calm down Inuyasha. They can take care of themselves," said Miroku.

"I don't care. I don't understand why they couldn't just have their stupid conversation here."

"Because it was something that Inukigo-chan thought that Kagome-chan might want discussed in private," Sango explained.

"What could be so private that they needed to go into the forest for it?"

"Oh, for Kami's sake Inuyasha, she wanted to talk about you courting Kagome-chan," Sango said in an annoyed tone.

'_Oh yeah, Inukigo mentioned that didn't she?_' Inuyasha thought, although he wasn't about to let his current companions know the truth about the situation.

"N-Nani?! I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Inuyasha cried defensively.

"Lose the act Inuyasha," Miroku said calmly, "We all know about it so there's really no point."

'_N-Nani?!_'

"B-But, how?!"

"I already knew about youkai courting, and Inukigo explained it to Sango," Miroku explained.

"I knew about it too," Shippou piped up.

"How the hell would you know about something like that?!" Inuyasha yelled as he grabbed the kit by the tail.

"Hey! What do you take me for. I might be just a kid, but I'm still a youkai. I know a courtship ritual when I see it."

Inuyasha struggled for a moment to try to come up with something but came up empty handed.

"Keh!" he spat, dropping Shippou, then turning his back to the others and dropping to sit cross legged while folding his arms in the sleeves of his haori across his chest.

"There's no need to be embarrassed about it Inuyasha," Miroku said.

"Yeah," Sango added, "There's nothing wrong with going after someone that you're interested in Inuyasha."

Inuyasha said nothing and refused to turn to look at either of them. He was still embarrassed regardless.

'_Wait, if it has been this obvious that I'm courting Kagome, does that mean that Naraku already knows what she means to me? The attack the other day was meant solely for her after all. Maybe I can go ahead and mark her._'

Inuyasha went off into his own little world, making Miroku, Sango, and Shippou very happy. He had be complaining ever since Kagome and Inukigo had left, and was now finally being quiet. The entire forest was actually silent and peaceful, until the serenity was suddenly shattered by an enraged scream.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY?!!!!"

Everyone's heads jerked in the direction of the shout, even the humans. It had been so loud that there was no way they wouldn't have heard it.

"What in the…?" Sango started incredulously.

"Inuyasha? Wasn't that Inukigo?" Miroku asked, looking towards the hanyou.

"Yeah," Inuyasha said, standing up and walking towards the path, sniffing tentatively, "She and Kagome aren't that far away…" he paused, then frowned and started growling.

"What is it, Inuyasha?" Sango asked, becoming concerned by his growling.

"They're not alone," Inuyasha bit out.

"If they're not alone, who's with them?" Shippou asked curiously as he came to sit on Inuyasha's shoulder.

"Kouga," Inuyasha growled out, before he took off, causing Shippou to scream and hold on for dear life.

Sango and Miroku looked at each other with identical worried looks.

"This might not turn out well," Sango stated.

"No, I very much doubt it will," Miroku replied, "We should go and see if there's anything we can do."

"Right," Sango agreed, nodding her head, "Kirara!"

The small fire cat was instantly at her side and transformed so Miroku and Sango could climb on.

"Let's go."

Inuyasha arrived on the scene in seconds, taking in the situation in front of him. Inukigo was seething - there had been few times when he'd seen her so mad. She usually kept a calm outward appearance, letting her scent and eyes tell that she was pissed off at you. But this time he could actually **_see _**it - she looked like she was ready to tear Kouga's eyes out. Kouga just looked at her strangely with an indifferent expression, like he had no clue why the half demon woman in front of him was so mad. Kagome looked panicked - if they started to fight there would be nothing she could do, and would have to watch them tear each other apart.

"What's going on here?" he bellowed, as Kirara stopped beside him with Sango and Miroku.

Kagome looked at him gratefully, while Inukigo and Kouga both turned their eyes to them.

"Ooi," Kouga spat indignantly, "Who the hell this crazy wench is that's with Kagome?"

Inukigo looked back at him, trying to burn holes in his head with her eyes.

"W-wench?! Who the hell do you think you are bastard!" she yelled in his face.

"Shut-up would you?!" Kouga yelled back, "I don't get why you're so pissed at me in the first place, wench."

Inukigo was livid.

"You said that I smelled like dog-turd you idiot!!"

"Yeah, so? You do, that's why I said it."

"Why you…" Inukigo threatened, pulling her fist back, ready to take a swing at his jaw.

"Okay, okay, enough." Inuyasha said, rushing over and grabbing Inukigo's raised arm. As much as he hated the wolf, he didn't want to see him dead, and he was sure that Inukigo would kill him if they were allowed to continue.

"Ooi, let go. He's got it coming," Inukigo complained, trying to pull her arm from Inuyasha's grip, to no avail.

"Calm down," he told her sharply, leaving no room for argument. She whimpered and let her arms go slack. Inuyasha felt her give up and let her go.

Kouga watched the two, still annoyed that he hadn't gotten his answer.

"Am I gonna get an answer or what?"

Inukigo returned her glare to him once again.

"We're siblings you dumb fuck. Use your damn nose."

Kouga returned the glare with equal fire.

"What was that, wench?!"

"It was exactly what it sounded like, wolf shit! What, your ears not working either?!"

"That's it half breed! I've got no problem with killing you!"

"Keh! I'd like to see you try, dumbass! Let's see you land one hit!"

They were about to jump at each other with claws and teeth bared, but thankfully both were stopped by outside intervention. Inuyasha had quickly grabbed Inukigo under the arms using his elbows, and Ginta and Hakkaku had grabbed onto Kouga in various places to pull him back. Both were still growling, snarling, and throwing insults at each other while trying to pull free from their captors. Unable to move her upper body because of Inuyasha's hold, Inukigo was trying to reach out and kick Kouga with her foot, to no avail, and Kouga was almost dragging Ginta and Hakkaku as he tried to grab onto any part of Inukigo that came within his reach.

Inuyasha, Ginta, and Hakkaku managed to finally drag their respective captives apart so they could work on calming them down. Inuyasha dragged Inukigo back to where the rest of the group was waiting and forced her to sit down then crouched down in front of her.

"What started this?"

Inukigo growled before pointing over Inuyasha's shoulder at Kouga.

"That yarou told me that I smelled like dog-turd!"

"Yeah, because you do, baka onna!"

Inukigo's growling escalated, and she was about to get back up, before Kagome knelt down beside her and laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Kagome?"

"There's no need for fighting Inukigo-chan," Kagome explained calmly, "I think this is just a big misunderstanding."

"How do you figure that?" Inukigo asked, relaxing her posture again.

"Well, he said that you smelled like dog-turd. That's what he calls Inuyasha sometimes instead of using his name. He was saying that you smelled like Inuyasha. Is that right?" she asked turning to Kouga.

"Uh, yeah. What did you think I meant?"

Everyone present just shook their heads.

"What are you doing here anyways?" Inuyasha asked, irritated.

"I came to check on my woman of course," Kouga answered, walking over and making a grab for Kagome's hands again as she stood up. Inuyasha quickly stood as well and got ready to separate the wolf from Kagome, but stopped abruptly and became silent when Kagome stepped back to stand by his side, out of Kouga's reach.

'_Huh?_' This was different.

Kouga seemed more confused than Inuyasha did at her cold shoulder attitude towards him.

"Ooi, Kagome? What gives?"

All eyes were on Kagome, waiting for her response. She wasn't really sure what she should do. She wasn't accustomed to acting the way that she was. She looked to Inukigo for help, and Inukigo gave her a reassuring look as she got to her feet.

"Go ahead, tell him."

Kouga looked at Inukigo in confusion.

"Tell me what?"

Kagome took a deep breath to ready herself, then steeled her features.

"Kouga," she said, catching his attention before continuing, "Back off."

Everyone stared at her wide-eyed, except Inukigo, who had a smile on her face.

"N-Nani?"

"I said back off - don't touch me, don't talk to me so familiarly, and stop calling me your woman."

"I don't understand."

"What's not to understand?" Inukigo asked him from his right side. He turned to look at her, "She's saying she doesn't want you. Your claim is rejected."

Kouga looked between Kagome and Inukigo's smirking face in disbelief, then turning to pin a deadly glare on Inukigo.

"What the hell did you do?"

"Me?" Inukigo asked innocently, "I just took the liberty of explaining to Kagome how courtship worked."

"Like hell that's all you did. You forced her to react this way to me, didn't you?" Kouga said accusingly.

"I did nothing of the sort," Inukigo replied, crossing her arms and turning her head away, "I explained youkai courting to her, and how her actions were affecting both you and Inuyasha. Then I told her how she could get across the point that she wanted to. She's rejecting your claim all on her own."

"Wench, you've ruined everything," Kouga snarled at her.

"I ruined nothing. If you had eyes you would have known that you had nothing to begin with," Inukigo thought for a moment before turning her face back to him and narrowing her eyes, "But that's not what you meant was it?"

"What are you getting at?"

"I'm thinking that you knew Kagome had no idea about youkai courtship rituals. You knew that she was naïve to her actions and you were taking advantage of that, weren't you?"

"T-that's ridiculous!"

"I don't think it is. Not a very honourable thing to do, taking advantage of someone's kind nature to get what you want."

"Kouga…is that true?" Kagome asked softly from Inuyasha's side.

"N-NO! Of course not!" he said frantically, then rounding on Inukigo, "I care about Kagome! I'd never do that!"

"I have no doubt that you care for Kagome," Inukigo answered, "But I also have no doubt that you knew that when it came to Kagome's affection, that Inuyasha would always come before you," Inuyasha and Kagome blushed at the comment, "That's why you've been doing things like picking fights with Inuyasha, and coming on to Kagome. You knew that her reaction would be in your favour, and were hoping that Inuyasha would eventually give up, didn't you?"

Kouga said nothing, just growled deep in his throat. His silence spoke volumes, and anyone present with a youkai nose could smell that Inukigo's words had hit home with him. Ginta and Hakkaku were shocked that Kouga had done such a thing.

"Kouga…" Kagome said in disappointment.

Kouga closed his eyes, breathing deeply, then his eyes shot open and he glared at Inukigo from the corners of them.

"Fucking wench," he swore as he struck out at her.

Inukigo had been expecting a blow to come, since she could smell and sense his anger. However, she had been expecting him to try and hit her in the face, which was where her arms went to guard. Instead he struck out with his foot, hard, catching her in the stomach with his heel, which sent her flying into a large tree on the edge of the path. Inuyasha, Kagome, and the others called out her name in panic as she hit the tree. There was a loud crack, which everyone but Kouga prayed had been the tree. After hitting the tree with a cry, Inukigo fell to the ground on her stomach, which nearly wretched another cry from her lungs, but she managed to cut it off. She groaned and her face contorted in pain as she rolled onto her side, wrapping her arms around her stomach. Kouga starting to make his way over to her, when Kagome ran along side him straight to Inukigo's side. He made no move to stop, until Inuyasha blocked his path.

"Don't even think about it. Take another step towards her and I'll kill you on the spot."

"Like you could, inukuro. Now, move outta my way."

"I don't think so, Kouga," Sango stated, as she, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara flanked Inuyasha, preventing Kouga from moving any further.

"I'm warning all of you to get out of my way. I'm not finished yet."

"Yes you are," Kagome said from where she was helping Inukigo sit up. Her voice held both anger and disappointment, "I suggest you leave Kouga. If you start a fight with Inuyasha, I won't be stopping him this time."

Kouga seemed to deflate a little at that. He knew that there was no way he could take on Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku, and he had a feeling that Ginta and Hakkaku wouldn't be in a hurry to help him if he decided to take his chances. He huffed and turned his back to them.

"Fine, I'm going," he threw over his shoulder, "I'll be back."

And with that, took off in his whirlwind through the forest. Ginta and Hakkaku watched him go, not in any particular hurry to follow him. They walked over to Kagome and Inukigo, who were both still sitting on the ground and squatted down on their haunches in front of them with guilty looks on their faces.

"We're really sorry that happened," Ginta said.

"Yeah, he didn't hurt you that bad, did he?" Hakkaku asked.

Inukigo managed a smile, despite the pain in her midsection and back.

"I'll be alright. Thanks."

Both nodded and stood up, said their goodbyes before apologizing again for their leader's behaviour, then ran off in the direction that Kouga had went.

The rest of the group approached as they left, Inuyasha coming up and kneeling directly in front of Inukigo.

"You alright?"

"I think so," Inukigo answered, "I'm pretty sure he didn't break anything," she added, wincing as she laid a hand on her stomach, "But I'll have bruises for the rest of the night, that's for sure."

Inuyasha nodded, satisfied at the moment with the assessment of her injuries.

"We'll check them out once we're back at camp."

"Alright." Inukigo answered, not really in the mood to argue with him.

"Can you walk?"

"Yeah," Inukigo said, using Inuyasha's shoulder for leverage to pull herself up, only to double over and wrap an arm around her stomach when she tried to straighten into a standing position, "No," she corrected herself with a sigh and a grimace.

Inuyasha stood up beside her and lifted her into his arms, being careful not to jostle her too much.

"Shit," Inukigo groaned after she was comfortable, "I hate to admit it, but that was one hell of a kick. I've never felt like this after just one hit before."

"Got you good did he?" Inuyasha asked as the group walked back to camp.

"Yeah. Although, it's mostly my fault. I thought he was gonna punch me, not kick me. I wasn't ready for the hit, couldn't brace myself for it."

"Kouga has jewel shards in his legs. He tends to use his legs more often in battle because of that," Inuyasha explained.

"So that's why," she said laying a hand on her face, "I'm glad I decided to block, not duck."

Inuyasha nodded in agreement. Had she ducked, Kouga could have hit her in the neck or face, and judging from the pain she was in now, a shot to either of those areas could have very well killed her. Inuyasha mentally shook himself to get rid of the thought.

"You let your mouth run away with you," he chided, "Kouga fights with me when he comes around, but he's never all that violent. You got to him."

"Yeah, so what? It was about time he faced reality. Not my fault he couldn't handle it."

"No, but you're paying for it now."

"This is no big deal Inuyasha. Just bruises. They'll be gone by morning."

"But it could have been worse, Inukigo-chan," Kagome said as she came to walk next to Inuyasha, "What if you had ducked? He might have killed you if he had hit you in the face or throat," she said, voicing Inuyasha's earlier musings.

Inukigo looked at Kagome, a guilty feeling settling in her stomach.

"Gomen ne, Kagome."

"Eh? Why are you sorry?"

"Well, you consider Kouga your friend, and back there, I kinda beat him into the dirt. That, and I wasn't very caring when I brought up him taking advantage of your kindness. I admit, that I sort of lost control of myself, and I'm sorry for that."

"It's alright," Kagome replied with a small smile on her face.

The group remained silent as they walked, not taking very long in returning to the campsite. It was just getting dark, but their well-sized fire kept their small camp well lit. As soon as they entered the small, treeless area, Kagome ran for her back pack.

"I'll get my first aid kit," she called over her shoulder.

Inuyasha nodded in acknowledgement, then walked over to the fire and sat Inukigo down close to it so they'd have plenty light to take a look at her injuries. He took her kimono when she handed it to him, then sat behind her with his back to her while she started unwinding the thick binding that was wrapped tightly around her breasts and ribs. He glanced over his shoulder at her once, getting a vague look at the large bruise on her back from where she hit the tree. It covered most of her back, and didn't look too bad, but he figured the one on her stomach was probably a lot worse. He turned around again when she gave a muffled cough, only to see that she was looking at him. He looked at her questioningly, and she inclined her head towards the other side of the camp fire. He sighed when he saw the reason she had stopped what she was doing. There was Miroku, trying very hard to appear like he had no interest in the fact that Inukigo was practically half naked, but failing miserably. Had it been during the day, they could have looked at Inukigo's injuries somewhere away from camp, but they needed the fire light right now. Deciding to pity the monk this once, he didn't tell Sango, but called out to Kagome instead.

"Ooi, Kagome. Bring over one of your towels with you."

"Alright."

Moments later she appeared with her first aid kit in one hand and the towel in the other. She held the towel up in front of Inukigo to block Miroku's view, who did lose interest and went over to talk to Sango while she polished her Hiraikotsu. After Inukigo finished with the bindings, Kagome handed her the towel so she could use it to cover herself.

"How about we take a look at your back first, Inukigo-chan?" Kagome suggested. Inukigo nodded and carefully shuffled around on her bottom so her back was to the fire and she was facing Inuyasha. The towel fell down to cover her stomach, so he couldn't get a look at it. Kagome sat down behind Inukigo, and grimaced at the large, dark bruise that travelled straight down between her shoulder blades to just above the small of her back. Inuyasha saw the grimace, and thinking that it was worse than he first thought, went behind Inukigo with Kagome. He saw that it wasn't, and explained to Kagome that to a hanyou, a bruise like that wasn't nearly as bad as it seemed. He was proven correct when Kagome rubbed some ointment for bruises on her back, and she flinched from the cool feeling of the cream, not pain from having it touched.

When she was finished, Kagome suggested that Inukigo lay on her back, seeing as she couldn't sit up completely straight. Inukigo agreed, and Inuyasha helped her lay back on the ground. Once she was settled, Kagome moved the towel away from her stomach, and gasped in shock. Inuyasha grimaced and looked up at Inukigo's face.

"You sure he didn't break any ribs?"

"Yeah," Inukigo replied, taking a deep breath and wincing at the pain it caused, "Probably a few cracked and bruised, but not broken."

"You're fucking lucky then. Shit, this looks awful."

And it did look awful. It wasn't nearly as big as the bruise on her back, but it was at least twice as dark, with dark purple blotches. Inuyasha admitted to himself that it was something that he would definitely find painful. He reached out to inspect it with his hand and frowned when Inukigo flinched and drew in a harsh breath through her teeth.

"Sorry," he said sympathetically as he started to gently press at her ribs to confirm that none were broken.

"S'ok," she managed to get out between small grunts of pain as he pressed at her tender ribs. She knew that he was being as gentle as he could, but that didn't stop it from hurting. She was actually glad that he was doing it, since truth be told, she wasn't sure if she had any broken ribs. She was fairly certain, but that could have simply been wishful thinking on her part. As he finished, she barely suppressed a whimper as he touched a particularly bad spot.

"None broken," Inuyasha said as he moved away from her stomach and towards her head so Kagome could treat the bruise. Inukigo whimpered again when Kagome started to apply the ointment to her stomach.

"Ah! Gomen ne, Inukigo-chan!" Kagome cried out, worried that she had hurt her friend.

"It's alright, Kagome," Inukigo assured as she forced a smile onto her face, "Go ahead, I'll be fine."

"Okay," Kagome agreed hesitantly, resuming her previous actions.

As soon as she began, Inukigo bit down on her lower lip to make herself silent. She knew that Kagome would feel guilty for causing her pain, so she wanted to make it seem as painless as possible. Just as Kagome was finishing, and Inukigo was biting her lip hard enough so that she was about to draw blood, a hand rested on her chin, startling her a little bit. The thumb of that hand then gently pulled her lip out of her mouth. She looked up at Inuyasha to see a smirk on his face, but sympathy in his eyes.

"Keh, can't go two days without hurting yourself, can you?" he asking in a joking tone.

"No, I guess not," she replied, grateful that he was trying to take her mind of things, "Just like always, ne?"

"Yeah, just like always," he replied, thinking about how things had been in that past. She had always been hurt a lot back then. So had he, but she took most of the harder hits. He felt bad for it, since he was often the one that got them into the trouble, but she was the one who ended up getting hurt the most, usually because she had taken a hit meant for him. He looked down at her stomach and frowned to himself. How long had she been back, almost two weeks? In such a short amount of time she had already been injured three times.

'_Definitely just like always,_' he said to himself.

He reached up a little and started scratching her ears and head.

"Damn wimpy wolf is going to pay for this."

"No, Inuyasha," Inukigo said with her eyes closed. Having Inuyasha rubbing her ears was comforting, and Kagome had finished with her stomach and was digging through her first aid kit, "I was the one who made him angry, so it was mostly my fault. Besides, he's probably already paying for it," she whispered low enough so Kagome wouldn't hear.

"What do you mean?" he asked. She didn't answer, but glanced at Kagome, who had her back turned to them. Inuyasha eyes narrowed in thought, then widened slightly when he realized what Inukigo was saying - Kagome had probably lost her trust in Kouga.

'_I see. The wolf **is** a wimpy asshole, but he does care a lot for Kagome. Having her lose her trust in him would probably deal him a bigger blow than I ever could. I know that it would be the same for me._'

"Yeah, I see what you mean," he agreed as he continued to rub her ears.

"So, what's the damage?" Miroku asked, as he and Sango made their way over and sat down next to Inuyasha. Shippou, surprisingly enough, climbed into Inuyasha's lap so he could be closer to Inukigo's face. Inuyasha looked surprised for a moment, but left the kit alone.

Miroku and Sango, who had not seen Inukigo's injury beforehand, both winced when they got a good look at her bruised stomach.

"Kami, Inukigo-chan…that looks horrible," Sango gasped.

"I have to agree with Sango," Miroku added, "It must be causing you great pain."

Inukigo gave them a small smile for their concern.

"It's not as bad as it looks. It'll be gone by morning."

"Are you sure, Inukigo?" Shippou asked in a worried voice.

"Hai, I'm sure," she replied, giving him a reassuring pat on the head. He was leaning into her touch, until she jumped and sucked in a harsh breath. She immediately looked down towards her stomach, where Kagome sat, her hands hovering over the bruise, which now had a medium sized white patch placed over it.

"Gomen ne, Inukigo. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"No, it's alright," Inukigo replied, her eyes widening slightly as she looked at the patch. '_Weird, it's warm…mmmm…feels nice though,_' "What is this thing?"

"Oh, it's a heating pad. It's supposed to be good for sore muscles. I thought it might help your stomach. It's not hurting you is it?"

"No, it's not hurting," Inukigo responded, shaking her head. She closed her eyes and a small smile came to her face, "Total opposite actually."

Inuyasha chuckled when she started making a low, contented rumbling deep in her chest. He moved Shippou from his lap to his shoulder, then moved to pick her up.

"C'mon lazy," he said jokingly as he carefully hefted her into his arms.

"Hmm?"

"You're going to go to sleep for a little while."

Inukigo didn't protest as he moved her a little ways away from the campfire and laid her down next to Kagome's bag. Kagome followed him, and draped a spare blanket that she had pulled out of her bag over Inukigo. Inuyasha watched her drift off as he continued to scratch her ears and head. As soon as she was asleep he plucked Shippou from his shoulder and laid him on the ground next to Inukigo's head. Shippou looked up at him, confused by his very uncharacteristic gentleness.

"Inuyasha?"

"You stay here and keep an eye on her for me, alright runt? Let me know if she looks like she's hurting."

Shippou's eyes widened, surprised that Inuyasha would trust in him to do such a thing for him. He smiled widely and nodded his head vigorously. Inuyasha smirked at him and ruffled the kit's hair affectionately. Meanwhile, Kagome watched the whole exchange with a gentle smile on her face.

'_And he says that he doesn't like Shippou. What a faker._'

Inuyasha got to his feet as Shippou curled up against Inukigo's shoulder, and Kagome followed him back to the campfire. They were quiet for a few moments before Miroku broke the silence.

"So, Inukigo said that her wounds would be completely healed by sunrise, correct?"

"Aa. The visible bruises on her back and stomach should be gone within a few hours. Her ribs will be healed by morning."

"Kouga hit her awfully hard. He must have been extremely angry. The only other time I've seen him like that was when he thought that you had killed his pack Inuyasha," Sango said, petting Kirara, who was sleeping on her lap.

"What she said got to him, I guess."

"Do you think what she said was true? About him taking advantage of Kagome-chan's kindness?"

Inuyasha shrugged, looking into the fire.

"I don't know. Either he was ticked off by the accusation Inukigo made, or he was ticked because she was right. Wouldn't surprise me all that much if the wimpy bastard was taking advantage of it. It doesn't really matter either way."

"Ahem…Inuyasha…" Miroku said, catching the hanyou's attention.

"Nani?"

He looked over at Miroku and Sango, who were both wearing identical concerned looks, and at his curious glance, jerked their heads towards Kagome. He turned his head to see what they were worried about, and his expression drooped at what he saw.

'_Kagome…_'

She wore a downcast expression, and was staring at her clasped hands. Inuyasha felt guilt creep over him as he watched her. She looked so sad.

'_Baka, it's your fault too. Her feelings may have been taken advantage of, and you just said that it didn't matter. Baka, baka, baka!!!_'

After a few silent moments of debating, Inuyasha got to his feet and walked the few steps towards Kagome. He stopped in front of her and bent down long enough to grab her clasped hands and pull her to her feet. She looked up at him curiously, although he could still see sadness in her eyes.

"Inuyasha?"

"Come with me for a while? For a walk?" '_Please, Kagome._'

He didn't release her hands, and waited for her response. Kagome looked at him, searching for the reason behind his actions. In the end she nodded in acceptance, and he turned and walked off, still holding onto one of her hands. As they passed by, Sango made to get up and say something to them, but Miroku's hand on her shoulder quieted her.

"Houshi-sama?"

"Let them be."

"But…"

"It's alright. I think that they should go and talk by themselves for a while."

Sango eyed him sceptically.

"You mean, you're **_not _**planning on eavesdropping on them?"

Miroku shook his head.

"No, I believe that they deserve to have a private talk this time."

Sango narrowed her eyes in agitation.

"**_This time_**, you say?"

Miroku laughed nervously, having been caught in his little slip up.

"Of course, it's not as though I have ever eavesdropped on their conversations. As a humble monk, I would never resort to such a thing."

"Of course," Sango replied sarcastically.

'_Humble monk, my ass._'

Sango sighed before she spoke again.

"Do you think that they'll be alright, Houshi-sama?"

Miroku smiled and pushed himself to his feet.

"I'm sure they will be Sango. Why don't you and I prepare the evening meal. We'll keep some for them for when they return."

Sango nodded and stood as well to go gather food from Kagome's backpack, while Miroku went to collect water from a nearby stream. They cooked the meal in relative silence, and then settled down to eat without much incident. Sango was surprised that he hadn't tried to touch her once. It wasn't until they were half finished their stew that Miroku spoke again.

"I wonder…maybe he's going to ask her."

"Nani?" Sango asked, looking up from her meal.

"Inuyasha. Perhaps he will finally ask Kagome-sama to become his mate. It might be that her clear refusal of Kouga today will give him the courage to do so."

"Do you really think so, Houshi-sama?"

Miroku shrugged before answering.

"It's highly possible. With Inuyasha one can never know."

"True. I hope that you're right about it though. It would make Kagome-chan so happy if he asked her."

Miroku nodded in agreement and ate another mouthful of his stew.

"That it would," he replied after he swallowed. He was silent for a moment, as though he were contemplating something rather important. He was still staring thoughtfully at the bowl he held in his hands when he spoke again, "Sango…? I was wondering…could we…perhaps…talk about something other than Inuyasha and Kagome?"

Sango looked at him in confusion. Miroku sounded almost…nervous? She couldn't figure out what he was getting at. He was close to stuttering.

"Of course, Houshi-sama. What was it you wanted to talk about?"

"Us," Miroku replied evenly after taking a deep breath.

"Us?" Sango questioned. She tilted her head slightly to the side.

Miroku nodded, but didn't say anything, just continued staring at his hands.

Sango was becoming more confused by the minute. Miroku never acted so shy. It was as if he was afraid to ask her something.

"Houshi-sama?"

"Do you remember, when I asked you a few months ago, to live with me and bare my children, once we defeat Naraku?"

Sango's face took on a slight hint of pink and she smiled warmly at him.

"Of course I remember. How could I ever forget that?"

Miroku let out a relieved sigh and finally looked up at her with a smile on his face.

"I'm glad. I was beginning to think that you had forgotten about it."

"Nani? Why would you think that I had forgotten something so important to me?"

Miroku smiled sheepishly at her.

"Forgive me for doubting you Sango."

"Why is it that you were doubting me in the first place?" '_I bet I know…_'

"Well, when one receives such cold responses, one has to wonder, ne?"

'_I knew it. Pervert,_' Sango thought as she gave him a dry look. The look on Miroku's face revealed that he seemed to know exactly what she was thinking.

She sighed before laying her empty bowl on the ground and scooting over closer to him and tentatively laying her head on his shoulder. Miroku took it a step further and wrapped his arm around her. Sango leaned further into him and sighed happily.

"I'm not going to change my mind. I meant what I said about wanting to be with you once we defeat Naraku."

Miroku nodded and leaned his head atop of hers.

"And," Sango said, closing her eyes, "Keep your hands from wandering and they'll still be intact by the time we get married," she added, pinching the back of his hand as it started to travel south.

"Hai, hai," Miroku laughed nervously, returning his hand to it's previous position.

The couple remained silent after that, each enjoying the other's company.

Behind them, lying on the ground, Inukigo smiled as she watched the young couple, before drifting back into a light doze.

* * *

As Inuyasha dragged Kagome away from camp, she had to wonder what had brought on his sudden mood.

'_Why did he ask me to come for a walk with him? What's bothering him?_'

"Inuyasha?"

No answer.

"Inuyasha?" she asked quietly, fearing that there was something that she had done to upset him, and now he was ignoring her. He didn't answer her right away and she hung her head sadly.

"Nani?" Inuyasha replied after a few moments.

Kagome jumped, since she hadn't been expecting him to answer, and realized that they had stopped at the base of a large tree. Inuyasha was looking at her curiously, like he was waiting for her to say something, and Kagome shook herself, remembering that she had wanted to ask him a question.

"Is there something wrong Inuyasha?"

"Iie, nothing's wrong. What gave you that idea?"

"Well, you did drag me off, then ignored me."

"I wasn't ignoring you," Inuyasha explained as he sat down between the roots of the tree, pulling Kagome down next to him since he was still holding her hand, "I just wanted to make sure that we didn't have any eavesdroppers before we started talking."

"Oh," Kagome replied sheepishly.

She watched him curiously, waiting for him to speak, because the look on her face told her that he was trying to say something.

"I didn't mean it," he said quietly.

"Eh? What do you mean?" Kagome asked.

"Back there, I said that your feelings being used didn't matter. I didn't mean that," he replied, turning his head to look at her.

Kagome smiled at him. He was so worried that he had hurt her feelings.

"I know that you didn't mean it Inuyasha. Thank you for being worried about me."

"K-keh!" he coughed out, turning to look at the ground as a light flush came across his face. Kagome fought back the giggle that wanted to come forth at his expression.

"Was that all you wanted to say Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha fidgeted a bit, looking as though he was considering something else. She remained silent, knowing that he would talk when he was ready.

"Inukigo explained courtship to you earlier," he stated the blush on his cheeks becoming slightly darker. He was glad that it had become dark enough for Kagome not to notice.

"Aa," she answered, colour coming to her face as well, "Gomen ne, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha's head jerked up at her words.

"What are you apologizing to me for?"

Kagome played with the hem of her skirt and looked up at him.

"For the way I've been acting whenever Kouga comes around. I didn't know that I was encouraging him so much. I never meant to give both you and him the wrong idea about my feelings. Gomen ne."

Inuyasha smiled at her warmly.

"It's alright. I know now that you didn't understand what was happening. I should have known it sooner, and I…I'm sorry…that I always got so angry with you over it."

Kagome's eyes widened. He had just apologized, for getting mad at her all those times. She smiled back at him just as warmly, then leaned against his shoulder. They sat there silently for a few moments, before Inuyasha remembered something else that he wanted to ask her.

"Kagome?"

"Hmm?"

"Was there anything else that Inukigo mentioned to you?"

Kagome thought for a moment, remembering the conversation that she had with Inukigo earlier.

"She explained the courtship and a few other things, and she said that you wanted to talk to me back in my time."

Inuyasha nodded. He had been hoping that his sister had mentioned that.

"If it's alright, could I have that talk with you now?" he asked quietly.

"Are you sure? I guessed that you wanted to do it there because of the added security that no one would hear us. If you really want to though, it's fine."

"I'm sure. I don't want to put it off anymore."

Kagome looked up at him, waiting for him to continue. He looked like he was struggling to find a way to start. She remembered Inukigo telling her to be supportive of him and after a moment of nervous hesitation, she turned so she could wrap her arms around his waist. He stiffened for a moment, looking down at her.

"It's alright, take your time."

Inuyasha smiled again and wrapped an arm around her. How was this girl able to take down all his barriers so easily. He took a steadying breath before he began.

"I'm sure that if Inukigo explained courting to you, that she explained the marking to you as well, right?"

Kagome nodded her head in agreement.

"You have to know Kagome…that I've wanted to mark you. For so long, I've wanted to mark you as my intended. There are just…so many things, that kept me from asking you."

Kagome looked up at him in wonder. She hadn't been expecting him to say that right away. The blush on her face deepened as Inuyasha looked down and smirked at her.

"Although, the way you handled the wolf put one of those worries to rest."

Kagome smiled at him and giggled before looking away from his face again. When she was quiet again, Inuyasha continued.

"That aside, there's something that has me more worried than the wolf. The mark would be a very physical sign that I care very much for you. I worry that, with it out in the open like that, that it would be used against us. That someone would hurt you to get to me," he said as he tightened his grip on his shoulder slightly.

"Naraku," she said in reply, hugging him a little tighter.

"Aa. I don't want to put you in any more danger with him Kagome, but after what happened the other day, I'm not sure if you having my mark will make much of a difference."

"When that youkai attacked Sango-chan and I at the spring?"

"Yeah. The youkai said that the attack was meant for you right?" he paused, waiting for her nod before continuing, "I think that it's already obvious to Naraku that I care about you. The mark wouldn't add to that," he said blushing.

Kagome smiled, noticing the shy note in his voice.

"There's one more thing, Kagome, that you need to understand about this."

"Okay."

"It's about Kikyou."

Kagome couldn't help but stiffen at the name. She managed to calm herself, remembering what Inukigo had told her.

'_I was there when he was courting Kikyou, and I can tell you that what he feels for you goes much deeper than what he ever felt for her._'

Inuyasha had felt her body go rigid, and his ears drooped. He knew that Kagome didn't like it when he talked about Kikyou, but he had to tell her this.

"Kagome, you know that I've made promises to Kikyou. In the beginning I intended to honour every one of them," he didn't pause long. He didn't want her to become upset from this.

"But things have changed now. I no longer believe that I owe my life to Kikyou, and I no longer intend to die with her. I know that the Kikyou I loved died years ago, and that the one that walks now isn't the true Kikyou. If she was than she would never ask that of me."

Kagome sighed in relief. Despite Inukigo's reassurances, she had still been unsure. Hearing it from Inuyasha directly had been what she need to alleviate her doubts.

"However, there is one promise that I want to keep," he felt Kagome's eyes on him and tilted his head to look at her," I will defeat Naraku and avenge her death. It's true that I don't love her, but I will always care about her. Because of that, I will protect her from Naraku. You see Kagome, how can I promise myself to you, when I can't fully devote myself to you? I would never ask you to promise yourself to me, when I can't give you all of myself in return. I could never do something like that to you."

"Inuyasha…"

Inuyasha watched the emotions play across her face. He wasn't really sure what it was that he was seeing. There was such a mix of emotions in her eyes that he couldn't tell one from another. When she pulled her arms from around his waist his ears drooped and he closed his eyes as he lowered his head. He had feared this - her rejection.

His breath hitched and his eyes shot open at the feel of soft, warm hands cupping his face and lifting it up so he could look into her eyes. She was now kneeling in front of him, her eyes shone with tears, and she had a bright smile on her face. She was so beautiful, looking at him like that, and he had to force himself to remember how to breathe.

"I understand," she said in a whisper, "that you will always care for Kikyou. I never expected you to stop caring about her, and I respect the feelings that you have for her. She's the first person you ever loved, it would be cruel of me to expect you to forget her."

Inuyasha couldn't speak. He just listened as she continued.

"Hearing all that from you, Inuyasha, is something that I've wanted to hear, for such a long time. I think that knowing this I have the courage to say this now."

The smile never left her face as she closed her eyes, causing two tears to fall down her cheeks. When she opened them again he could see nothing but love in them.

"Ask me."

Inuyasha's eyes widened, and he finally found his voice.

"N-nani?"

"Ask me, to bear your mark."

"D-demo…"

Kagome shook her head, placing the fingers of one hand over his mouth to stop him.

"I know. But I want you to. I want you to mark me, because I want to promise myself to you."

"Kagome…" Inuyasha said quietly, reaching up with both hands and resting them on her face to wipe away her tears with his thumbs. He didn't move for a few moments, just looked into her eyes, before becoming bold and sliding his hands back into her hair, gripping the back of her head. He dragged her forward gently, and after being sure that she wasn't resisting him, dropped his mouth on hers.

The kiss started off tender and gentle. He moved his mouth slowly over hers, trying to show as much feeling for her through that kiss as he could, and marvelled at how easily she gave it back to him. He was surprised when she took the initiative to deepen the kiss by pressing closer and drawing his lower lip into her mouth, then started nibbling and sucking on it, but he didn't stop. She surprised him again when her tongue darted shyly into his mouth. When had she become so bold? Was he making her this way? He swelled with pride and nearly smirked at the thought. He was quick to react, and languidly tangled his tongue with hers, tasting her as she did him. He was so caught up in the taste and feel of her that he was forgetting to breathe.

Kagome was in much the same condition. She wasn't sure what had compelled her to act the way that she was. She hadn't even kissed a boy like that before. She was glad that he was responding to her the way that he was, otherwise she would have been mortified. Those thoughts quickly left at the feel of his tongue mingling with hers, then running over her teeth and the roof of her mouth. For her, there was nothing but Inuyasha.

Needing to breathe, Kagome pulled back enough to break the kiss, giving him a few quick pecks as she moved away, but did not leave Inuyasha's grasp. He leaned his forehead against hers, looking into her eyes and breathing just as heavily as she was. He swallowed hard before pulling back, only to rest his cheek against hers so that his mouth was next to her ear.

"Would you," he began softly, breathing still laboured, "bear this hanyou's mark? Become intended to this hanyou?"

His tone nearly made Kagome cry. He sounded so unsure of himself, as though he feared that she would say no, even though she had wanted him to ask her.

"Hai," she whispered.

He breathed out a sigh of relief, wrapping his arms around her shoulders.

Her arms, which had dropped down to his chest during the kiss, slid around to his back and held him to her tightly. She nuzzled his cheek in the way Inukigo had explained to her and whispered to him softly.

"Did you think I would say no, because of what you are?"

He didn't answer, and Kagome took his silence as confirmation.

"Inuyasha," she said, pulling back and bringing one hand up to stroke his cheek, "Right now, when I look at you, I see what I have always seen. Not the demon, the human, or the hanyou. I see what's in your heart - loyalty, determination, compassion, love. Everything that makes you who you are. And beyond that, I see the man that you are," she wrapped her arm around him again and rested her chin on his shoulder, "The man that I love, with all my heart."

Inuyasha was frozen. He stared ahead, eyes wide and unblinking, unable to move or speak. Her words had hit him hard. No one had ever said such things about him before. He had been ready to gather her to him and thank her with everything he was worth. But that last sentence, those last words, floored him.

'_She…she loves me?_'

He couldn't contain himself. He pulled her to him tightly and buried his face in her neck, whispering her name, and thanking her, and letting her know just how much he adored her. And he did something that he hadn't done since he was a very small pup - he cried.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome whispered when she felt the tears on her neck.

She smiled, knowing that the tears weren't those of sadness. She let him cry as she held him, rubbing his back to offer him comfort.

"Forgive me," he said quietly, after a few moments.

Confused, Kagome pulled back and pushed on his shoulders to make him sit up. His eyes made her smile. They were so open and unguarded, and there was so much trust for her there. And added to that she could see it - the vast amount of love that he had for her, only for her.

"For what?" she asked, reaching up to gently wipe away the moisture on his cheeks with the sleeve of her blouse. He grabbed her wrist and lay her hand against his cheek, taking comfort from her touch.

"I…I can't say that to you. I don't have the right to say that to you, not yet."

The smile never left Kagome's face.

"It's alright," Kagome said, "I understand. Just promise me one thing."

"Anything."

"Until you can, look at me like that more often."

Inuyasha smiled and nodded his agreement.

"I can do that," he said, before leaning forward and kissing her neck in the place where his mark would be, "You ready?" he asked, pulling back slightly. She nodded, and he grabbed the back of her elbows to pull her forward, "I need you closer."

'_Closer? How can we get any closer? We're already hugging._'

Her answer came moments later. When Inuyasha had them situated comfortably, his back was braced against the tree, and she was straddling his hips. Inuyasha pulled her flush against him, and Kagome blushed profusely at the contact.

'_I take that back. This is **definitely **closer._'

"You know what you're supposed to do, right?" he asked, pulling her out of her musing.

"H-hai. I need to bite you too right?"

"Aa. You need to bite me at the same time I bite you. I'll let you know when I'm about to do it."

"Alright."

Inuyasha didn't say anything else and started kissing and licking her neck. Kagome was so caught up in the feelings that he was causing that she forgot what she was supposed to be doing. A tiny nip to her neck woke her up and she immediately lowered her mouth to his neck and started to mimic his actions. After a few moments, Inuyasha began pressing his fangs to her neck, just enough to let her know what he was about to do. Kagome got the hint, and prepared to do the same. When she felt his fangs biting into the flesh of her neck she winced. She had known that it was bound to hurt, and began to subconsciously clench her jaw against the pain. The action caused her to press her teeth firmly against his neck, and she could hear Inuyasha's low growl of approval. Inuyasha kept biting deeper, and by the time his fangs were fully embedded in Kagome's neck, her teeth had broken skin, and her mouth was clamped down firmly.

For a few moments, both were completely still. Neither of them could move. Inuyasha was the first one to stir, as he gently removed his fangs from her neck. He began to lick at the wound lazily, lapping up the blood that had spilled and soothing the pain he had caused. Her blood had given him a heady feeling, and he was now so absorbed in her that he had no awareness of the world around him. Kagome made a noise that sounded oddly enough like a cross between a whine and a moan. She slowly released the hold that she had on his neck, then began to lap at the wound she had made in time with his motions.

Inuyasha immediately drew a deep breath and without thinking thrust his pelvis up against hers. Both of them moaned deeply at the friction the movement caused, but neither stopped what they were doing.

Inuyasha didn't know what was going on. All he knew was that he was with Kagome and she was making him burn. But it was strange. He was burning, he was sure, but he wasn't in any pain. Far from it actually. He had never felt anything so good before.

Kagome was in much the same condition. To her, there was nothing beyond Inuyasha and feelings that he was causing within her. She wasn't sure what was happening, but she was sure of one thing - the pressure building up between her legs from the grinding that they were doing was the best thing that she'd ever felt in her life.

It was the deep moans coming from Kagome that finally brought Inuyasha out of his daze. It only took him a split second to realize what they were both doing, and another to figure out that it was too late for them to stop. He had reached the point where he didn't want to stop. All he could feel was Kagome rubbing hard against him and her mouth on his throat.

'_Ohh fuuuck…_' he groaned mentally as tore his mouth from her neck and threw his head back and growled out her name. His hips flew up into hers on reflex as he came, and after she ground into him a few more times he felt her body go rigid and knew that she had found her release as well. She was gripping him tightly with both her arms and legs, and had muffled her scream by biting on his fire rat haori.

Inuyasha slouched against the tree as his body relaxed, and he brought his hands up from where they had been digging into the tree roots on either side of him to hold her to him as the both tried to catch their breath.

"You okay?" he asked once he had gathered himself enough to speak.

"Yeah," Kagome answered after taking a few more deep breaths, "Did we just…?"

"Yeah," he answered before she finished the question, knowing what she was going to say.

"Oh Kami…" Kagome groaned in embarrassment.

Inuyasha looked at her with worry. Did she regret what she had just done with him?

"I'm sorry, Kagome. I should have stopped us when I realized what we were doing."

Kagome looked up at him with concern when she heard his worried tone. When she looked at him and saw how frightened he looked she was quick to reassure him.

"No, no, it's alright, Inuyasha. I wasn't expecting something like that to happen. I'm just a little embarrassed by the way I acted, that's all. But," she continued, lowering her eyes and sporting a shy smile and a blush, "I enjoyed it very much."

Inuyasha grinned at her, showing a slight flush of his own.

"So did I."

Kagome looked up at him and smiled warmly, then leaned up to inspect the mark she had made on his neck. The moon was still fairly large, so there was just enough light for her to get a look at it.

"So, this is it, huh?" Kagome asked, gazing at the teeth marks left on the juncture of his neck and shoulder.

"Yeah," he answered, smiling at her curiosity, "For now it will look just like a regular scar, and we'll have to re-mark it every few weeks since it's temporary. But after we…well…take the last step in courting, it'll change into a permanent symbol, like a tattoo."

"What will it be?" she asked, not taking her eyes away from the mark.

"Don't know. We'll have to wait and see."

"Guess some," Kagome replied, reaching up to trace the mark with her fingers. As soon as her skin came into contact with the mark Inuyasha's breath hitched and his hips jerked upwards, causing him to groan again. Kagome gasped - and not totally from surprise - and a dark blush came across her face. Inuyasha raised his hand shakily and took her hand away from the mark.

"What was that? Was that supposed to happen when I touched it?"

"I have no idea," Inuyasha managed to get out. That little touch had felt **_way _**too good, "But I think that you probably shouldn't touch it for now," he grimaced. The movement he had just made had reminded him of the 'mess' that he made the first time.

Kagome nodded in agreement. It might not be a good idea for them to start **_that _**again.

"We should probably go back," Inuyasha said, "The others will probably start worrying."

"Yeah," Kagome agreed. She didn't even have time to get up off of him before Inuyasha had stood up with her still in his arms, facing her. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

"Inuyasha?"

"We're going to go clean up a bit first. I don't know about you, but my pants are getting a bit uncomfortable."

Kagome blushed when she realized what he was talking about, then giggled.

"That would be a good idea. Should we go get my bag first?"

"Do we really need it?"

"Well, we'd be able to get something to dry off with, and I wouldn't mind getting a change of clothes."

Inuyasha nodded.

"If no one's awake to see us and ask about it, then we'll get your bag. If not, we'll do without it."

"Okay."

Inuyasha began walking back towards camp with Kagome still in his arms, one arm across her back and the other under her bottom. They were nearly there when he spoke again.

"Arigatou, Kagome."

Knowing what he was thanking her for, she turned her head and placed a sweet kiss on the corner of his mouth.

"Your welcome, Inuyasha. Aishiteru."

Inuyasha smiled and kissed her temple.

'_I love you too, Kagome. And as soon as I earn the right to tell you, you'll hear me say it._'

* * *

Whoa…fans face I can't believe I wrote that. I nearly fainted from the rush of blood to my face. It's my very first lime, and no, it is not from experience, nor will any of the other citrusy stuff that I end up writing. So please, be nice.

I managed to get this chapter out quicker than I normally would, that's all thanks to the very nice reviews I got on the last chapter at media miner. See, reviewing does make me type faster! wink wink nudge nudge

I'm not sure about how long the next chapter will take to get up. I have exams until the 16th, but after that I'm free for three glorious weeks, so we'll see.

Well, I hope you all liked it, and I hope for some more of those wonderful reviews! Until next time!

Ja ne!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Standing at the edge of the campsite, Inuyasha and Kagome both breathed a sigh of relief seeing that everyone had drifted off. Inuyasha made straight for Kagome's bag, not even bothering to put her down as he reached for it and slung it over his shoulder. He walked off slowly again, heading for a large river that he knew was nearby, sure that no one had been alerted to their presence.

Unfortunately, he was wrong.

As soon as he and Kagome left the campsite, Inukigo's eyes shot open, staring in the direction that they had went. Other than that she remained still, knowing that Inuyasha would hear her if she moved. When she was sure that it was safe, she sat up, clutching the blanket to her chest.

'_Did I just smell what I think I smelled?_'

A blush slowly spread across her face. There was no mistaking that particular smell. It had been what had woken her up in the first place. The lingering smell of arousal and release from her brother and Kagome hung heavy in the air and it was making her feel uneasy. Then she shuddered and an almost sick look came across her face. Her brother's arousal and release were the last things that she wanted to smell. She tried to put it out of her mind, but the possibility of what those scents meant got her thinking.

'_They couldn't have done **that**, could they? Inuyasha was having a hard time deciding to ask her about taking his mark. There's no way that he went right ahead and mated with her, is there? I really hope that you didn't aniki. Now is not the best time to have to perform a mating ritual._'

Inukigo sighed and laid back down, using one arm to pillow her head as she looked up at the sky. After thinking about it for awhile she decided that she was going to confront them about it and get some answers as soon as they came back, no matter how hard it would be.

* * *

About an hour later, Inuyasha was on his way back to camp with a sleeping Kagome in his arms. She had protested to being carried back at first, but only minutes after he had swept her up bridal style and started to walk she had begun yawning and eventually fell asleep. He smiled when he looked down at her. She was dressed in her pajamas, and the wide neckline of the top she was wearing did nothing to hide the mark on her neck. Curiosity won over, and he shifted the arm that was holding up her shoulders so he could reach it. As soon as he touched it Kagome moaned and shifted in his arms. Inuyasha took his hand away immediately, not wanting to wake her up. He blushed slightly. Judging from the faint smell of arousal, touching her mark had made her feel the same way as he had earlier. Curiosity satisfied, Inuyasha left Kagome alone and continued walking.

As soon as he walked into the campsite, a sense of foreboding came over Inuyasha. He paused and looked around, reaching out with his senses to try and find whatever was causing chills to run up his spine. Shrugging when he couldn't detect a demon or any other source of danger, Inuyasha walked over towards Inukigo and deposited the bag where it had been previously. He eyed Kagome's still rolled up sleeping bag. Knowing that he would have to move her around a lot to get it un-rolled and her into it, he decided to forget it, and simply sat at the base of a tree with her on his lap and wrapped up in the folds of his haori.

"I've been waiting for you to come back."

Inuyasha jumped at the sound of his sister's eerily calm voice. He looked over at her and fought the urge to cower away when he saw the deadly look in her eyes.

'_I have a hunch that she's the source of that ominous feeling I was getting when I walked into camp._'

"Why's that?" he answered in the calmest voice he could muster.

She didn't say anything in return. She sat up with her back to him as she wrapped the towel from earlier around herself.

'_Hmm. Bruise is gone,_" he thought distractedly as he waited.

Inukigo stood up once she had the towel secure, taking the blanket with her as she walked over towards Inuyasha and the sleeping Kagome. She crouched down on her haunches in front of him and glared at him with a deadly look in her eyes. Inuyasha gulped.

'_I'm sooo deaddd!_' he whined mentally.

"You know, you woke me up when you came back earlier."

Inuyasha's eyes widened slightly but he tried to retain the image of innocence.

"Oh, did I?"

It didn't work.

"Yeah. And you know what else?" Inukigo asked, and Inuyasha shook his head, "I woke up to the oddest scent," she watched as a little colour drained from his face, "Any idea what that scent was?"

"No idea," he lied.

"You sure?"

Inuyasha gulped and nodded.

"Yes."

Inukigo sighed and then looked at him thoughtfully.

"Well, it smelled an awful lot like arousal and sex to me. And it was coming off the two of you. Care to explain why?"

Inuyasha blushed furiously. He knew that he was caught, but he couldn't get out any words to explain himself. He opened his mouth meaning to speak, but nothing came. Inukigo noticed his dilemma and decided to make it easier for him.

"Inuyasha, just please tell me that you didn't mate with her," she pleaded.

"N-no!" Inuyasha almost yelled, "I didn't mate with her!"

"Then what in the world happened?"

"I don't know! It just happened!" he blurted out in a near panic. He had never been so embarrassed in his life.

"Shh, shh, okay. Calm down," Inukigo soothed, putting a hand to his mouth to silence him before he woke everyone. She hadn't expected him to get so embarrassed, "Alright, so you didn't mate with Kagome?"

Inuyasha shook his head 'no' since Inukigo still had her hand on his mouth. She could tell from his eyes that he was telling the truth and sighed with relief.

"Alright, that's all I wanted to know. You don't need to say anything else," she said, releasing him, "Sorry, but now is not the time to be doing…those things."

He relaxed and nodded in understanding.

"I talked to her about the marking," he said quietly after a few moments. Inukigo's eyes widened.

"Really? I thought you were going to wait until you were in her time."

"I was, but after what happened the other day, I don't think it matters all that much who knows. Anyone of importance already seems to know it anyway."

"The attack at the spring?"

"Yeah. Seems like Naraku already knows that I care about Kagome, so there's really no use in trying to hide it from him."

Inukigo nodded in agreement.

"So what did she say, when you told her you couldn't do it yet."

"She said that she understood," he paused, a wide grin coming to his face, "And she said she didn't care. She wanted me to do it, and she told me to ask her."

Inukigo's eyes widened again.

"Y-you mean that you…"

Inuyasha smiled proudly and pulled on his haori and under kimono to reveal the fresh mark just above his collarbone. Inukigo's smile matched his as she leaned in to get a closer look.

"Way to go, nii-chan," she said, and then reached to touch the mark. Inuyasha jumped when she touched it, expecting the same reaction as before, but was surprised when nothing came.

"What's wrong?" she asked, having noticed how he jumped.

"Nothing. It's just that…something different happened when Kagome touched it."

"It did?"

"Yeah. It seemed almost like a trigger, or something."

"Trigger? Trigger for what?"

The blush returned to Inuyasha's face.

"Um…"

Inukigo noticed how he became embarrassed again, and figured that she knew what he meant.

"Ohhh. I didn't know that the mark could do that," she said, a slight blush appearing on her face as well.

There was an awkward silence for a few moments before Inukigo rose and then draped the blanket that she had been holding over Inuyasha and Kagome. Inuyasha looked at her in confusion.

"Inukigo?"

"I need to wash off the stuff that Kagome put on my bruises before I put my top back on. I might as well make a bath out of it," she explained, walking over to where her shirt and bindings had been left. She picked them up and walked back to Inuyasha and Kagome. She crouched down again and nuzzled her cheek against his. He smiled, returning the gesture.

"Congratulations, aniki," she whispered, kissing him on the cheek. When she pulled back she was smiling warmly at him, "I'll be back in a little while."

Inuyasha nodded in acknowledgement.

"Be careful."

"I will," she replied. She stood up, and after giving one of his ears a quick scratch, turned and walked out of camp.

* * *

A short time later, Inukigo was standing at the edge of a river, looking out over the water. It was fairly wide, and from where she was standing she could guess that the deepest places were probably about level with her hips. She set her shirt and bindings on a rock, then stripped of the rest of her clothes and added them to the pile as well. Now completely bare, she pulled the tie from her hair and then made her way out into the river, cursing the cold water as she went. After making it to hip-deep water, she braced herself then ducked under the water.

* * *

Koorimizu stalked through the forest with a scowl on her face. She had been searching for nearly two days and had yet to find the group of shard hunters. She cursed under her breath. She had been on her way back to Naraku's castle when Kagura and Kanna had intercepted her, telling her that she had failed. She had scoffed at them, but then Kanna had shown her images from the previous evening in her mirror. How the female hanyou ran up to the spring, and then called for her brother. How he had cut a hole in the ice she had created when he arrived, and how that woman had jumped in and pulled that Kagome woman out - still alive.

'_That damn hanyou wench._'

If it hadn't been for that hanyou, she would have been able to return home by now, instead of wandering around in the forest.

'_That woman will pay when I find her._'

Koorimizu was brought out of her brooding by the sound of splashing water. Curious, she walked towards the sound, and peered through the trees. Her breath caught at the sight before her. There was the very woman she had been cursing, all alone in the middle of a large river. A grin broke out on her face.

'_Well, aren't I lucky._'

* * *

Inukigo gasped for breath as she came up out of the water. Her hair, now heavy with water, clung to her back and shoulders. She rose to her full height, intent on making sure that all the ointment was gone from her stomach and back. She winced when she touched her stomach. The visible bruise was almost gone, but her ribs were another story.

"My, that looks like it hurts."

Inukigo jumped at the sound of the unknown voice. How had she not noticed someone approaching? Looking around quickly, she was unable to locate the source of the voice that had startled her. She was completely unprepared when ice shot out from one side of the river, quickly covering the distance to the opposite bank, and trapping her in the process.

"Nani?"

Inukigo tried to push off of the ice with her hands, but it was no use. She was wedged tightly in the ice and there was no way she was going to be able to pull herself out. She started banging on the ice in an attempt to break it away, but quickly realized that that wasn't working either. She then noticed the familiarity of her current situation.

"This is…"

"Well, aren't you in a tight spot."

Inukigo's head shot up in the direction of the voice. She watched as a tall, dark-haired woman dressed in blue walked out of the forest and began to cross over the ice towards her.

'_She was downwind,_' Inukigo realized. She sniffed the air, catching the woman's scent for the first time, '_This scent…_'

"So you're Naraku's newest incarnation. Koorimizu was it?"

"Correct," Koorimizu answered, stopping just in front of Inukigo with her arms crossed and an arrogant look on her face.

'_Great, the bitch **finally **shows up, and she's got me trapping in this stupid ice. Shimatta!_'

"Good, I've been hoping that you'd show up soon. Now, let me out of here you fucking coward so I can claw your eyes out," Inukigo growled out, flexing her claws.

Koorimizu laughed at Inukigo's attempted intimidation.

"No, I don't think that I will. Besides, I doubt you would be able to put up much of a fight. That injury looks quite hindering," she commented, pointing to Inukigo's stomach. A wicked grin crossed her face, and she landed a kick to the area before Inukigo could react.

Inukigo's face twisted up in pain, and her arms came around her stomach protectively as she fought the urge to double over. The kick hadn't been nearly as hard as the one she received earlier, but her injured ribs hadn't healed completely, and now everyone of them was screaming at her.

"Bitch…" she spat out.

Koorimizu smirked and then reached down to grab Inukigo's chin and pulled up roughly so she could look her in the eye. The expression on her face had changed to one of complete and utter hatred, which Inukigo guessed was directed completely at her.

"You're going to pay for interfering in Naraku-sama's plans, hanyou. He wishes the miko dead, and I will fulfil that wish even if I have to go through every one of you to get to her," she leaned down so her face was closer to Inukigo's, "Starting with you."

"Let. Me. Out!" Inukigo snarled as she lashed out at the other demoness.

Koorimizu leapt back with a hand to her injured cheek, where Inukigo had managed to graze her with her claws. She pulled her hand away, revealing four long, freely bleeding scratches. Inukigo smirked at the damage that she had done and held up her hand to brandish her now slightly bloodied claws, while Koorimizu looked livid. She growled and clenched her fists, glaring icily at Inukigo.

"Damn you. You'll pay for that."

"Keh! C'mon and try it."

Koorimizu lifted her right arm, and reached out in the direction of the unfrozen water. Inukigo watched as a thin column of water snaked up out of the river, coiling and twisting as it made its way towards Koorimizu's outstretched hand. The water seemed to have a mind of its own as it started to take shape. After a few moments Koorimizu closed her hand around the water, and Inukigo gasped as the water began to freeze, starting at her hand and spreading outwards. When the transformation was completed, Koorimizu stood with a five-foot long ice spear clutched in her hand. She began to walk back towards Inukigo, raising the spear to take hold of it with both hands, then lowered it again. When she stopped, the deadly point of the spear was level with Inukigo's neck. Koorimizu smirked and pushed the spear forward slightly, and Inukigo winced as she felt it bite the flesh of her neck.

"I was going to play with you for a bit, but I think that I should just finish you off now and be done with it."

Inukigo's expression never changed.

'_My movements are too restricted. She's skilled with that spear, I can tell from the way she handles it. There's no way I'll be able to dodge it, she'll just compensate knowing that I can't move very far. It's no use to call for help either; Inuyasha is too far away to get here in time._'

A look of acceptance came to her face when Koorimizu pulled the spear back to prepare to strike.

'_Forgive me, aniki._"

(AN: I could end it here and have a really good cliffy, but I'm not that mean)

* * *

Ginta and Hakkaku sat side by side in the small cave, both eyeing their pensive leader warily. They had long ago given up on receiving an explanation for Kouga's earlier behaviour. Every time one of them asked, he would growl and glare at them until they left him alone.

Kouga sat just outside the mouth of the cave brooding.

'_That damn wench. Why'd she have to open her big mouth._'

He was livid with Inukigo - that much was a given. However, not all of his anger was directed at the female hanyou.

'_And why did she have to be right?!_'

Kouga had admitted to himself that, to an extent, Inukigo had been right. He had been taking advantage of Kagome's kindness. However, there was one thing that she had overlooked; he had not been doing so intentionally. It was only when Inukigo had made her accusation that he had realized how true it was. He had been so shocked by the revelation that he had been unable to defend himself, which resulted in him lashing out physically.

Truthfully, he was ashamed of his actions. He had struck out and harmed a female, when she hadn't really done anything to harm him. Yes, she had provoked him, but what he had done was not justified. Then, to make matters worse, he had pursued her while she was injured with the intent of harming her further. He wasn't sure what had compelled him to sink so low.

To say that he was confused about the whole incident was an understatement. Never before had he been so quick to lash out at someone for verbally attacking him. What made her so different?

'_I don't know what it was, but there was just something about her that put me on edge._'

He didn't like that feeling that he had had when he had first noticed her scent. It made him feel uneasy, and that wasn't a feeling he enjoyed having. He frowned, thinking over what could have made him feel that way.

'_Humph. Must have been because it was weird to catch a female version of the mutt's scent._'

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath with the intent of letting out a heavy sigh, when his eyes suddenly shot open and he carefully sniffed the air. It was faint, but it was definitely there.

'_It's her, that woman. I think Kagome called her Inukigo._'

Kouga stood up and walked around to get a better idea of where the scent was coming from. He stopped when he found the general direction, contemplating what he should do. Although he hated the thought of it, he knew that he should go and apologize to her. She was alone at the moment, so he guessed that he would have a chance to talk to her without Inuyasha showing up and trying to kill him. He also decided that he would ask her about seeing Kagome, since he owed her an apology as well. Mind made up, Kouga turned his head back towards the cave.

"Ooi, you two! I'm going for awhile! Stay here and don't follow me!"

After hearing the affirmative yells from inside the cave, Kouga took off towards his destination

She was a fair distance away, but with his speed he knew he could be there within ten minutes. He continued with his pace, running at just a little more than half of his top speed, when a second, unfamiliar scent hit his nose. It took a moment for him to realize that is greatly resembled a scent that he recognized all to well. He growled deep in his throat.

"Kagura."

If there was a woman there that smelled similar to Kagura, than that could only mean that it was a demon borne of Naraku. Kouga picked up his pace drastically as a feeling of worry came over him. It unnerved him a little, but he didn't pay it much mind - he was more focused on reaching his destination as soon as possible.

He came to the trees lining the riverbank within moments, and stopped for just a second to assess the scene that was playing out before him. His eyes settled immediately on Inukigo, and for a few seconds he couldn't turn away. She was standing in the middle of the river, and seemed to be trapped by the ice that surrounded her hips. What caught his attention the most however, was the fact that she was completely bare from the hips up and was doing nothing to cover herself. He blushed and forced himself to look away and regain his senses, trying not to think of how he was just ogling the woman's body.

He brought his attention back to the current situation and focused on what was happening. The other woman, who he had determined was the demon that he had smelled earlier was now walking towards Inukigo with a very long, very sharp spear grasped in her hands.

'_Where did she get that?_'

Kouga watched as the demon came to stop in front of Inukigo, and suppressed the growl that wanted to come forth when the spear was pressed to her throat and a thin stream of blood began to flow down her neck, then down her chest, and between her...

'_No! Stop staring! Stop staring!_'

Then, Kouga heard the demon speak.

"I was going to play with you for a bit, but I think that I should just finish you off now and be done with it."

Kouga's eyes widened as he watched the unknown demoness pull the spear back to prepare for a fatal blow. Without hesitation, he shot from the tree line at top speed, heading straight for the demon. She had just been about to thrust the spear forward when he collided with her body and tackled her to the ground. He jumped away from her and landed in a defensive position in front of Inukigo, eyeing the fallen demoness warily.

Inukigo looked up at Kouga's back with nothing but shock on her face. She had been staring death in the face, then had nearly shrieked in surprise when a brown and black blur had shot by, taking Koorimizu with it. To discover that it was Kouga had her head spinning.

'_Why is he here? Did he come after me to finish what he started earlier, and just stopped Koorimizu so she wouldn't get me first?_'

As Koorimizu began to get to her feet, Kouga turned to look at her over his shoulder to check if she was alright. Inukigo didn't know that was his reason for doing so, but it did make her realize something that she had forgotten.

'_Kuso! He saw me naked!!_'

Her arms quickly came up to cover herself as a deep blush spread across her face and down her neck. Kouga's head whipped back around, partly from the embarrassment of staring at her, but also because the demon he had knocked over was now on her feet and sending an icy glare right at him.

"Damn you, wolf. This is no concern of yours. How dare you interfere!"

Kouga looked unfazed by Koorimizu's anger, and shrugged his shoulders.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I have some unfinished business to take care of with her," he said, jerking his head back in Inukigo's direction. "I know that you're one of Naraku's demons. What the hell do you want with her?"

Koorimizu growled at him.

"That wretch is an annoyance, and I was making sure that she never interfered with one of Naraku-sama's plans ever again. Now move wolf, unless you want to share her fate!"

Kouga smirked wickedly at the threat.

"You really think that you can back that up wench?"

Koorimizu frowned and raised her spear into an attack position.

"I know that I can."

That said, she charged at him. Kouga had to admit that she was fast, but it was nowhere even close to his speed. He would have jumped out of the way completely, but then remembered that Inukigo was directly behind him and would be struck if he did. Instead, he walked a few steps closer to the charging demon to get a safe distance from Inukigo. He waited until Koorimizu was about to strike, then simply sidestepped the attack. It was too quick for Koorimizu to compensate for, and before she knew what was happening Kouga had the spear gripped tightly under one arm and began swinging it around. She screamed when he let go, sending her sailing across the ice and into the riverbank. She was quick to get back on her feet, but stood her ground instead of trying the same tactic again.

Kouga was now facing Inukigo, although he still had his eyes on Koorimizu, and still had a confident, cocky smirk plastered on his face. Inukigo caught herself as she was about to mentally swoon.

'_What the hell was that?!_'

She watched as Kouga took off like a shot towards Koorimizu, who had a look of fear in her eyes as the wolf prince advanced on her. She had to twist around and look over her shoulder to see what was happening.

'_Wow, he's fast,_' Inukigo thought.

Koorimizu was in a panic. She couldn't hit Kouga, no matter what she tried. What was worse was that he seemed to be toying with her. He would come within striking distance at a speed that she could follow, then would dart away before she could hit him.

Inukigo couldn't help but watch him. The way he moved had her captivated. Whenever he would dodge one of Koorimizu's attacks she could see the way the ropey muscles of his legs contracted and released under his skin. And then there was that smirk again…

'_Gah, what the hell is wrong with me!_' she thought as she shook her head. There was no way that she could be attracted to him…was there?

'_And what the hell is he doing, playing with her like that? Is he showing off?_'

Kouga wasn't sure what he was doing. He never played with his opponents like this. He could have killed Koorimizu a dozen times over by now, so why was he dragging it out? Then it hit him - he was showing off! However, it was the reason that he was showing off that disturbed him.

'_What in the world am I doing, showing off because she's here? It's not like I'm trying to impress her or anything._'

As if to prove the point that he had made mentally to himself, he darted in close to Koorimizu and knocked the ice spear out of her hands. Koorimizu watched it clatter across the ground longingly, then turned to look at Kouga with definite fear in her eyes.

"Well, I have to thank you for the exercise," Kouga said with a frown on his face, "But I'm afraid that it has to end here. I have some things that I need to take care of, and right now you're in the way."

Koorimizu's eyes widened, and she tried to back away, but Kouga was too fast for her. Before she could react, Kouga's hand had shot directly through her chest and out her back. Her pupils became dilated and her eyes unseeing as she began to cough up blood. A few moments later her eyes became empty, and her body slumped over, before turning to dust. Kouga flicked excess blood from his hand as he casually walked over to the edge of the water and knelt down to wash off the rest.

As soon as Koorimizu was dead, Inukigo could feel the ice lose it's demonic power, but made no move to free herself from it. When Kouga turned to look at her, she was frozen in place. She didn't know why, but she just couldn't move. Then he stood up and walked towards her with a neutral expression on his face. Inukigo gulped as he came closer. She was sure that he had come to finish what he started with her earlier, and here she was, standing naked in the middle of a river and surrounded by ice, and she couldn't get her body to move in order to defend herself. Kouga walked around Inukigo and stopped directly in front of her, and she looked up at him with wide, slightly frightened eyes. She didn't know why she was having this reaction to him. Normally she would never be this submissive to anyone without a fight.

Kouga looked down at Inukigo. He could smell that she was slightly afraid of him, as well as see it in her eyes. He sighed mentally. He hadn't wanted her to be afraid of him. His eyes travelled lower, below her crossed arms, and settled on her stomach. He winced when he saw the ugly bruise there. It looked bad now, but he guessed that it had been much worse a few hours earlier when he had first inflicted it, and she probably had some internal damage as well. He frowned when she still didn't free herself from the ice. She seemed to be too wary of him to move.

Inukigo started to panic when she saw Kouga pull his fist back. She was sure that he was going to hit her. Since she had been unable to get her body to respond, she was still held within the ice, and would be unable to do anything to get away from him. Kouga brought his fist down forcefully, and Inukigo closed her eyes waiting for the hit. She was surprised when it never came, but felt the ice in front of her give way instead. She opened her eyes to see what was going on, and was shocked to see Kouga kneeling on the ice not two feet in front of her, breaking apart the ice and tossing away pieces as they came free. Inukigo stood there speechless and completely still as he moved around her body to break away all the ice surrounding her. She was beginning to feel self-conscious, since she was, after all, completely naked and the only parts she had been able to cover were her breasts.

When he had freed her completely from the ice, Kouga didn't even give her a chance to try and pull herself out of the water. He reached down and pulled her up by the shoulders, then swung her body up so he could catch the backs of her knees and carried her bridal-style to the shore towards her clothes.

The feel of cool armour and warm fur against her skin caused Inukigo to come out of her stupor immediately, and a deep crimson blush spread across her skin. She was quick to point out her objections to the position she was in.

"Hey! What in the hell do you think you doing! Put me down right now!" Inukigo yelled as she struggled to get free from his grasp.

"Calm down! It just looked like you weren't going to move, so I figured that I'd help you out. Besides, do you **_want _**to give me an eye-full?"

Inukigo froze and her blush deepened. She 'humphed' then turned away from him

"I can walk you know," she grumbled.

"Yeah," Kouga nodded before stopping, "But we're here now, so you don't have to," he added, sitting her on the ground next to her clothes before turning and walking a short distance away.

Inukigo looked up at him curiously. It didn't look like he was going to leave, so she figured that he was waiting for her to get dressed. She quickly pulled on her fundoushi and hakama, then set to work wrapping her bindings around her torso. She started at her breasts and worked her way down. When she got to her stomach, she grunted a little in pain from pulling the bindings tight. Kouga turned to look at her wondering what had caused her to make the noise. He grimaced when he saw the reason.

"Does it hurt much?"

"Nani?" Inukigo asked surprised. She hadn't been expecting him to speak and stopped what she was doing.

"The wound to your stomach. Does it hurt much?"

"Oh," Inukigo replied, as she resumed wrapping the bindings, "Not really. It's just a little sore because that bitch kicked me," she explained gruffly, wondering why he was bothering to ask her.

Kouga nodded in understanding. He waited for her to pull her shirt on and tuck it into place before walking towards her. She still watched him warily, but she no longer feared him as she had before.

"Your name is Inukigo, right?"

"Hai," she responded curiously. He didn't seem as though he wanted to hurt her. "Was there something that you wanted, Kouga? You said that you had some unfinished business with me," she said, standing up so she could look him directly in the face.

"I do," Kouga responded, then looked away, "About earlier…"

"Yes?" Inukigo pressed. She stared at him in confusion. He sounded almost…shy. What in the world was he getting at?

"I…apologize, for my actions," he said quietly.

"Eh?" Inukigo exclaimed. She had never thought in a million years that Kouga was the type to apologize so easily. She had also thought that he would never be sorry for what he had done to her.

"I shouldn't have attacked you for what you said, I'm sorry for doing it."

Inukigo just stared at him for a few moments before responding.

"It's alright. I understand why you did it."

That caught Kouga's attention. His head snapped up to look at her. Inukigo smiled at him slightly.

"It was my fault for provoking you the way that I did. I'm sorry for letting my mouth run away with me."

"You were partly right," Kouga said, his head dropping in shame, "I was taking advantage of Kagome's kindness, but you have to understand, I didn't realize that I was doing that. It wasn't until you said those things that I noticed it."

Inukigo gave him measuring look. He seemed truly sorry for what had occurred.

"I believe you," she said simply.

Kouga looked up at her, surprised. He had expected her to need more convincing.

"Don't take that lightly," she warned him, "I don't tend to trust people very easily. For some reason, I find myself able to trust you."

Kouga nodded.

"Arigatou."

"I accept your apology, Kouga," she paused for a moment to choose her words, "But, my wounds were only physical. There's someone else who deserves an apology from you far more than I do."

"Kagome," Kouga breathed. Inukigo nodded.

"I know that she's probably angry with me right now, and I'm sure that inukuro would like nothing more to tear me apart, hell, I was sure that you would try that as soon as I came near you, but, do you think that I would be able to go apologize to her now?"

Inukigo observed him for a moment. She supposed that it couldn't do any harm.

"It should be alright," Inukigo replied, "But you'll have to keep your distance from her. If you don't, it won't be just Inuyasha that comes after you," she shot him a deadly glare, "I will too."

Kouga held his hands up in a defensive gesture.

"Alright, I understand."

"Good," Inukigo said as she turned to walk away, "Come with me."

Kouga nodded and followed behind her. When he caught up and was side by side with her he spoke again.

"So you're dog-turd's sister?" Inukigo nodded curtly and Kouga continued, "I'm guessing that the two of you are twins, since you look and smell so much alike," another nod, "So, how come I've never seen you around before?"

Inukigo was still a little mad about the 'dog-turd' reference, since it reminded her of other things he had said to her earlier. It took her a few moments to decide whether to answer his question.

"I was sealed, until recently."

"Soo ka."

Kouga was silent for a moment, before his curiosity got the better of him and he asked another question.

"Why do you want me to keep my distance from Kagome so badly?"

Inukigo looked at him from the corners of her eyes, which were gleaming with amusement.

"I'm sure you know how defensive males that have recently marked their intended can be. I just want to make sure that my brother doesn't tear you to shreds."

Kouga's face paled.

"M-marked?"

"Uh-huh," Inukigo replied. She watched as Kouga's face fell and his pace slowed until he had stopped in the middle of the trail. Inukigo sighed and walked back towards him, then bent down slightly so she could look up at his down-turned face.

"Kouga, you don't strike me as someone to be that dense. You had to have seen that you had no chance with Kagome. She loves my brother more than anything. Can you honestly tell me that you didn't know that?"

Kouga shook his head.

"No, I knew it. I always have known it. I guess I just didn't want to believe it," he looked up with a humourless smile on his face, "Can't blame a guy for trying though, right?"

Inukigo smiled sympathetically. Although she was glad that Kagome was with Inuyasha, she couldn't help but feel a little sorry for Kouga.

"No, I suppose not," she turned to continue walking, then decided to ask something that had been bothering her.

"Kouga, if you knew that you never had a chance with her, then how did you really feel about Kagome?"

Kouga looked around thoughtfully, trying to gather his thoughts. It was a few moments before he spoke.

"I'm not sure," he replied with some difficulty, "I know that I care for her very much, maybe even love her, but I've never really known if it's the kind of love that one has for a mate. I've always told her and acted as though I do, but I think that was more to piss inukuro off than anything else," he happened a glance at Inukigo, only to shy away slightly when he saw the glare she was sending him.

"You love to torment my brother, don't you?"

Kouga laughed sheepishly.

"What can I say? I never get tired of his reactions."

Inukigo turned to hide her amused smile. She could just picture Inuyasha now, chest puffed out while growling and snarling with everything he was worth. She stomped down on the giggle that wanted to come out at the mental picture.

Kouga caught the smile on her face before she turned around, then saw her shoulders shake with suppressed laughter. He smiled himself, knowing that he had made her laugh. Then he frowned in thought.

'_Why am I happy to know that I made her laugh?_'

Inukigo turned her head back around once she got herself under control.

"Alright, I guess you're right about that," she said, flashing a smile that, to Kouga's confusion, made his heart jump.

'_What the hell is going on with me?_'

Inukigo turned back around continued to walk down the trail. There was silence between her and Kouga, and that gave her mind the opportunity to think back on what had just happened at the river with Koorimizu.

Her reactions to watching Kouga fight were unsettling to her. She had never felt them before, so she had no real clue as to what they meant. She was starting to feel them again as she replayed the fight in her mind. The speed and power he displayed, the grace and timing of his movements, the confident air around him, that cocky smirk…

'_Gah! I'm doing it again!_'

Inukigo fought the urge to shake her head, for fear that Kouga would think her crazy.

'_Oh great, now I care about what he thinks of me. What the hell is wrong with me?_'

She had a pretty good idea of course, but she wasn't sure if she really wanted to admit it to herself. She was attracted to him, that was the only explanation. She blushed at the thought.

'_There's no way. I can't be attracted to him._'

She frowned to herself. That hadn't even sounded convincing in her head.

Meanwhile, Kouga was walking behind Inukigo, staring at her back curiously. The woman's scent was fluctuating rapidly. It had started out completely normal, but then it had spiked slightly in a way that he found frighteningly pleasant. Then it quickly switched to embarrassment and finally to irritation. What in the world was she thinking about that had gotten her so worked up?

Inukigo's mind was still on the fight, when she remembered something that she hadn't done earlier.

"Oh, Kouga. I forgot. Thanks, for helping me out earlier. I won't lie, if you hadn't showed up, she would have killed me."

Kouga looked a little surprised. He hadn't been expecting a thank you from her.

"It's no problem."

Inukigo nodded, then remembering Kouga's speed, came up with the perfect idea for how to clear her mind. She slowed her pace until she dropped into step beside Kouga.

"I have to say, I was impressed by the speed that you were using while you were fighting."

Kouga looked down at her curiously. Was she…complementing him?

"Yeah?"

She looked up and nodded at him.

"Yeah."

As Kouga looked at her, he watched warily as her eyes took on a mischievous gleam, and a cocky smirk broke out on her face.

"Tell me," she said, her smirk growing wider, "How confident are you in that speed?"

"Huh?" he replied staring at her, "What are you getting at?"

Inukigo didn't answer him, just kept on smiling. Kouga's eyes widened in recognition when he could sense the challenging aura radiating from her.

"Are you challenging me, onna?" he asked as he stopped in his tracks to look at her.

"What do you think?" she asked smoothly, crossing her arms across her chest

Kouga gave a smirk of his own in response.

"Do you believe that you can keep up with me?"

Inukigo laughed outright at that.

"Well, I haven't seen much of your abilities, but I'm confident that I can. You see, I said that your speed was impressive. I never said that you were faster than me."

Kouga's outward appearance didn't change, but on the inside he was genuinely surprised.

"Humph. That fight was nothing to go by. I was only using a fraction of my speed then."

The smirk never left Inukigo's face.

"I repeat, I never said that you were faster than me."

The surprise did register on Kouga's face this time, but it was only a moment before his smirk was back in place.

"Whatever you say," he said in a mocking tone that made him sound as if he were humouring a small child.

Inukigo caught the implications behind his tone and frowned. She hated it when she was spoken to that way. Instead of letting him get to her, she walked up beside him and crouched into a running position.

"We'll race back to my group's camp. Whenever you're ready."

"What will the winner get?"

"Eh? What do you mean?" Inukigo asked, standing upright again.

"What will the prize be for the person who gets there first?"

"Huh? I didn't mean for this to be a contest, I just challenged you. Whoever wins is proven to be the fastest. That's all I had in mind."

"Pft. That's no fun," Kouga said, rolling his eyes, "I should get something when I win."

Inukigo growled at him for his cockiness. Kouga ignored the warning.

"Alright," she agreed, "IF you win, I'll have to do a favour for you. If I win, you'll have to do one for me."

Kouga thought about it for a moment.

"Can the favour be anything?"

Inukigo wasn't sure she liked the sound of that, but she didn't want to seem like a wimp.

"Yeah, sure," she replied, returning to her crouching position, "Ready?"

Kouga nodded and crouched down beside her.

"Alright," Inukigo said, lowering herself further, "San…ni…ichi…HIKE!"

Both of them took off, leaving a cloud of dust in their wake. They ran along the path, occasionally leaping into the trees, but neither of them going at their top speed. They goaded each other on, throwing insults to get the other to run faster. Their speed gradually increased as they ran neck and neck, and before long both were running at their limits. Inukigo knew that the campsite was getting close, and she didn't want to run straight into it with Kouga like this. She figured it would be better if they stopped just outside and have Kouga wait while she went to explain his presence to Inuyasha. She spotted a large tree up ahead, and decided that could be their finish line.

"Ooi!" she yelled out over the generated wind, "First to get to that big tree up there wins!"

"Aa!" Kouga yelled to let her know that he understood which tree she was talking about. He smirked and called out to her again, "It's time for me to leave you in my dust onna!"

Inukigo scoffed at him.

"Yeah right, ookami!"

She nearly balked when Kouga started to pick up speed slightly. It wasn't much, but it was just enough to overtake her by a few strides. The tree was coming up fast, and Inukigo fought to pick up her pace, but it was no use, she was at her limit. Kouga passed the tree and skidded to a stop, and she did the same just seconds after him. However, she had been pushing herself so hard that she overcompensated, and leaned back too far as she was skidding. She ended up falling over and sliding roughly along the ground on her left hip, going much farther than she would have gone otherwise. When she finally came to a stop, she flopped onto her back with her limbs spread-eagle and groaned.

'_I can't believe he beat me, by only that much._'

She was panting harshly from the run, so she didn't hear Kouga as he approached her.

"Ooi?" he asked, standing above her, "You alright?"

Inukigo opened her eyes and looked up at him, fighting off the blush that wanted to spread across her face.

"I'm alright," she got out between breaths.

Kouga nodded at her, then smiled smugly.

"I win."

Inukigo rolled her eyes at him, annoyed by his childish display.

"Yeah, yeah, you won. What do you want?"

"What do I want?"

"Yeah, your favour remember?"

"Oh yeah. Anything I want right?"

"Hai," Inukigo pouted.

Kouga looked as though he was in deep thought, but then shook his head and extended a hand to her.

"I can't think of anything right now. I'll come up with something later. Just remember that you owe me."

"Yeah, I'll remember," Inukigo sighed as she took his offered hand.

He pulled her to her feet with a little more force than necessary, and Inukigo stopped herself with a hand on his chest to keep from crashing into him, while Kouga instinctively put a hand on her shoulder to steady her. He kept his hold on her wrist the entire time. They looked at each other curiously before realising their position and quickly pulling away from each other. Both sported a slight blush, and it was a few moments before either of them spoke.

"Well, um, cough I'll go and…umm…let Inuyasha and Kagome know that you're here," Inukigo said, "You should stay here and wait while I prepare my brother. I'll call to you when we're ready."

Kouga didn't say anything, but nodded in reply. Inukigo quickly walked off into the forest, her mind now racing once again.

'_What was that all about? And why did I challenge him like that? Was I trying to prove myself to him or something? Ugh…I'm not sure what to think anymore, this whole thing is just so weir-_'

"Inukigo?"

"Huh?"

Inukigo jumped at the sound of Inuyasha's voice. She had been so caught up in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed that she had walked straight into camp. Inuyasha was staring at her with a slight amount of concern.

'_He stayed awake to wait for me._'

"You alright? You seemed to be pretty out of it."

Finally able to find her voice, Inukigo managed to give him an answer.

"I'm fine."

Inuyasha didn't look as though he was entirely convinced.

"You sure? You sound winded…" he took a tentative sniff and his eyes widened slightly, "And I smell your blood. What happened?" he asked in a tone that demanded an answer.

Inukigo looked at the ground as she came to kneel before Inuyasha, who was still holding a sleeping Kagome in his lap.

Inuyasha was confused. She was acting submissive, as if she was guilty for doing something wrong. What could have possibly happened to her?

"While I was at the river…I wasn't exactly careful," she replied quietly.

Inuyasha's concern increased and he leaned forward slightly, careful to not wake the sleeping girl in his arms.

"Inukigo, tell me. What happened?"

Inukigo turned her gaze up to look him in the eyes.

"While I was at the river, that new demon of Naraku's showed up. The same one that attacked Kagome and Sango a few days ago. I wasn't paying attention and she managed to sneak up on me."

"What?!" Inuyasha whispered harshly, somehow remembering to keep his voice down as to not wake their companions, "Show me."

"What?"

"Show me where she hurt you."

"Inuyasha…"

"Now," he ordered sharply.

Inukigo sighed before reaching up to undo the top clasp of her kimono, then pulled down the neck and lifted her chin so Inuyasha could see the wound in the middle of her throat, right above her collar bone. He reached out with one hand and wrapped it around the side of her neck, stroking the wound over lightly with his thumb. He felt Inukigo jump slightly when he touched it, but knew that it still had to have been sore since she had received it so recently. It had only just healed over, which was why he could still smell the blood from it. He let his hand drop and Inukigo went about re-tying the clasp.

"Anywhere else?"

Inukigo shrugged.

"She kicked me in the stomach, but it's alright, she didn't do any damage. Bitch got what she deserved though," she said with a smirk.

"Oh, so you killed her then."

Inukigo shook her head.

"No, I wasn't the one who killed her."

Inuyasha's confusion returned.

"You didn't? If you didn't kill her, than who…wait a minute," Inuyasha leaned in a little closer to his sister, suddenly catching a whiff of something that he really didn't like, "Would you mind telling me…why the hell I can smell that damn wolf on you?" he asked in a tone that sounded of barely contained rage.

Inukigo blushed slightly but fought it back as she explained.

"Kouga showed up. He's the one who killed the demon. She had me wedged in that damn unbreakable ice by my hips. She was about to kill me, but Kouga showed up and ended up…saving me," she finished quietly, embarrassed by having needed to be rescued.

Inuyasha nodded, his anger going down a notch, but he wasn't finished.

"Well, as nice as that is, it doesn't answer my question. I want to know how his scent got on YOU. It's not one your clothes, it's directly on your body. How do you explain that?"

Inukigo's blush darkened a few shades. There was no point in lying to him, he would know if she did. Besides, she wasn't even sure she could lie if she tried.

'_He's gonna be pissed…_'

"Y-you see, umm…Koorimizu trapped me in the ice while I was taking a bath. After Kouga killed her, he came over and broke the ice away, and then hepickedmeupandcarriedmetomyclothes," she rushed out in one breath.

Inuyasha's eyes were wide as he grasped what she had said and the words registered in his head.

"He. Did. **WHAT**?!!!"

Inukigo cringed and shied away from him slightly. Kagome jerked awake in Inuyasha's arms, having been startled by his yell. The case was the same with Miroku and Sango, as well as Kirara and Shippou, and all were now looking in their direction curiously. Inuyasha, not having noticed this, kept up with his tirade.

"You mean to tell me, that not _only _did the bastard **_see _**you naked, he also **_picked _**you up and **_carried _**you to your clothes! And you **_just let him_**?!"

Inukigo nodded dejectedly and whimpered loudly in a desperate plea for forgiveness, even though she knew that the only thing she had done was not fight Kouga off when he had picked her up. She hated when he yelled at her this way. He had done it very few times, but every time he did, it made her feel so small.

Inuyasha either ignored her plea, or didn't hear it over his growling.

"Damn it, I don't suppose that you just **_happened _**to let him watch you get dressed too!"

Inukigo shook her head back and forth rapidly as she folded in on herself and whimpered loudly again.

"Inuyasha, that's enough!"

Inuyasha started, then looked down at the girl still nestled under the blanket in his lap, only to receive the deadly glare that she was sending him. He could swear that she was trying to bore a hole through his head from the way she was staring at him. He happened to take a glance around the campsite to see that everyone else was sending him similar looks, only none of them were as strong as Kagome's. She untangled herself from the blanket and shifted around so she was facing him and at eye level.

"What in the world are you doing?! Look at what you've done to her, baka!!" she screamed, pointing behind herself at Inukigo.

Inuyasha flattened his ears against his head, ready to yell back at her for screaming at him, until he glanced over her shoulder at his sister's huddled up form. His face fell and he nearly whined himself when he saw what his words had done. Inukigo was completely hunched over and was clutching her arms tightly. He could see her shaking and could hear her small whimpers. She looked like a pup who had just been scolded for some horrible indiscretion, and was now begging to not be exiled from her pack. He hadn't realized that he had pushed her so far. Oh yeah, he felt lower than scum.

While he was mentally thinking over how much of an ass he was, Kagome got up out of his lap and quickly let him know what she felt he should get for his actions.

"Osuwari!"

Inuyasha immediately crashed into the ground face first, but there were no curses forthcoming.

'_I sooo deserve this right now._'

Kagome knelt back down next to Inukigo and began rubbing soothing circles on the female hanyou's back.

"It's alright, Inukigo-chan. Don't be upset, we all know that Inuyasha is a moron."

Kagome began to feel panicked when her attempts to comfort Inukigo did nothing to break Inukigo out of the trance she seemed to be in. Inuyasha lifted his head, still unable to move his body because of the spell.

"That won't work," he explained quietly.

Kagome looked over at him, the question 'why' clearly written on her face. Inuyasha waited for the spell to completely release him and then he crawled over to them as he explained.

"You're not the one she needs reassurance from."

Kagome shifted back slightly to give the two hanyous some room. Inuyasha settled down next to Inukigo and began rubbing his hand up and down her back. He leaned down so his face was right next to hers.

"C'mon Inukigo. I'm sorry for getting so mad, I didn't mean to yell at you."

Inukigo stopped whimpering and shaking, but she didn't move from her spot on the ground. Inuyasha sighed, at least he was making some progress. He stilled his hand, resting it on her right side and giving her a few comforting pats.

"I didn't mean to make you so upset. Get up now, okay?"

Inukigo didn't seem as though she was going to move, but after a few minutes she complied and sat up slowly. Inuyasha winced when she didn't look at him, but looked over at Kagome instead.

"Kouga is here. He wants to talk to you," she said in an emotionless voice.

Inuyasha's anger returned slightly at the knowledge that the wolf was near.

"There is no way that he is talking to Kagome alone," he said sternly.

Inukigo didn't look at him as she replied in the same emotionless tone.

"I never said that he wanted to talk to her alone. If that was what he had wanted I would have never brought him back here with me," she directed her attention back to Kagome again, "Is it alright for him to speak to you?"

Kagome was a little worried by Inukigo's cold tone and facial features.

'_She looks like Sesshoumaru…_'

"Hai, it's alright."

Inukigo nodded and got to her feet.

"I'll go and get him then," she said. She then turned and walked off, without sparing anyone a second glance.

As soon as she was gone, Kagome rounded on Inuyasha and pinned him with another glare.

"What in the world is your problem, Inuyasha?"

"My problem is that that fucking wolf had his paws all over my sister!"

"I gathered that much, but why did you have to be so harsh with her? It's like she's completely shut off now."

Inuyasha sighed and slouched his shoulders slightly.

"I know. I didn't mean to go that far. She'll be fine in a little while."

"That was pretty low of you Inuyasha," Sango spoke up as she knelt down next to Kagome.

"I would have to agree with Sango," Miroku said, following Sango, "It wasn't fair of you to take out all your anger on Inukigo."

Inuyasha growled low in irritation.

"You think I don't know that? Do I look like I'm happy about it?"

"Inuyasha, you big jerk! Why'd you make Inukigo so upset? You're so mean!" Shippou yelled from the spot he'd taken up on Kagome's lap. Even Kirara seemed to growl her disapproval of his actions.

Instead of thumping Shippou on the head like he normally would, Inuyasha 'keh-ed' and whipped around, leaving his back facing them.

"Back off runt, it's none of your business."

They all decided to leave him alone because of his mood, which let Inuyasha think over what they had said.

'_They are right. I am a jerk, and what I did wasn't fair,_' Inuyasha sighed inwardly, '_I just hope that Inukigo forgives me quickly. The last time I yelled at her like that she completely ignored me for almost a week._'

Inukigo walked slowly back through the forest to where she had left Kouga. Her emotionless mask was still in place, and she knew at that moment she must very much resemble Sesshoumaru. The thought made her angry, but her expression never changed. She pushed that thought aside and got back to thinking about the reason for her current state.

'_Baka! Why did he get so upset with me? He made it sound as though I gave Kouga permission to touch me. It's not like I didn't want to fight him off, but he would have gotten way too good a look at me if I had._'

Inukigo knew that she was lying to herself. Deep in her mind, she knew the real reason that she had let Kouga carry her was because somewhere deep down, she had enjoyed being carried by a man who she found attractive, even if only subconsciously. She knew it wasn't right for him to have carried her, considering what her state of dress, or rather undress, had been at the time, but she couldn't really bring herself to care. And that thought scared her.

"Hey."

Inukigo stopped abruptly and looked up towards the voice to see Kouga sitting on a log, closer to camp than where she had left him. He stood up and walked towards her, with a slightly guilty look on his face. She turned again and began to walk back towards camp.

"Kagome said that she'll talk to you. C'mon."

Kouga followed along behind her, and spoke after a few moments.

"Sorry that I got you in trouble. I could hear inukuro yelling from here."

"It's fine," Inukigo answered emotionlessly.

Kouga remained silent after that. Her cold tone worried him. He hadn't been able to make out the words and wondered what Inuyasha could have possibly said that made her this closed off. In a few moments they entered the campsite. Everyone's eyes turned to them, but Inukigo showed them no acknowledgement. She just walked right by everyone and straight to the other side of camp before jumping up into a tall tree and disappearing among it's branches without a word. Kouga watched her go sadly, before turning his eyes to the group before him. They all had their eyes on him, waiting to see what he had to say. He didn't bother to sit down, what he had to say wouldn't take long.

"Kagome…"

"Yes, Kouga? What was it you wanted to speak to me about?"

Kouga sighed and turned his gaze away from her.

"I wanted to apologize for my behaviour earlier. And I'm also sorry for taking advantage of your kindness. I realize now that I did do that, but it was never my intention. Gomen nasai."

Kagome smiled at him warmly.

"Arigatou Kouga. I accept your apology."

Kouga returned his gaze to her eyes and returned her smile.

"Thanks."

He then turned to Inuyasha with a serious look on his face.

"Listen inukuro. Don't punish your sister because of me. It's not her fault that I decided to carry her."

Inuyasha looked up at him with his chin propped up in one hand.

"Keh, I know that already. I already apologized to her for it. I just have to wait for her to forgive me."

Kouga nodded in understanding.

"Consider yourself lucky though," Inuyasha continued, "If it was my father you were dealing with, you might not be alive right now. He was more protective of her than I am, so be grateful that I'm not him."

Kouga gulped and nodded again. It took him a few moments after that to find his voice.

"Okay. There are still some things I need to say to the two of you," he said, indicating Kagome and Inuyasha, "First off, congratulations on your marking," this caused Miroku, Sango, and Shippou to balk, and blush formed on Kagome's and Inuyasha's cheeks, "Secondly, Inuyasha," said hanyou jerked up in surprise at hearing the wolf prince use his name, "As the prince of my tribe, I vow that if there is every a time when you are unable to do so yourself, I will protect Kagome with my life."

Inuyasha stared at him in shock, as did everyone else present. He could tell from the way Kouga had said the words that he meant it. It wasn't a taunt saying 'I'll be taking Kagome as my woman when you die', he actually meant what he was saying.

"Arigatou, Kouga."

Kouga nodded, satisfied that his offer had been accepted.

"I'll be going now then. I left Ginta and Hakkaku in a cave somewhere, and we have to get going at dawn to go check on the pack."

He walked over to stand under the tree that Inukigo had jumped into first when they had arrived, knowing that she was still up there.

"Ooi! I'm going now! Don't you forget that favour you owe me, onna!"

The rest of the group looked on curiously as a disembodied 'yeah, sure' drifted down from the treetops. They were all thinking the same thing.

'_What favour?_'

Kouga shouted a 'ja ne' back up at her, then jogged back across the campsite to leave the way he had come.

"Later Kagome!" he then smirked at Inuyasha, "See ya round, dog turd!"

Inuyasha was instantly on his feet and glowering at the retreating wolf demon.

"Ooi! I dare you to come back here and say that to my face, wolf shit!"

Kouga laughed as he waved over his shoulder, then took off in a cloud of dust.

The campsite was silent for a few moments before Kagome decided to speak.

"Well, that was certainly different."

Inuyasha grunted in agreement.

"I'll say. Definitely weird."

Inuyasha sighed to himself as he turned his gaze to the tree where he knew that his sister was brooding.

'_Now I just have to find a way to deal with her. She won't come down tonight though, so there's no point in trying._'

He sighed again. They still had a long time before sunrise, and he had been hoping to get some sleep. He idly wondered if Kagome would go to sleep in his arms again. Then he remembered how angry she was when she had woken up and winced.

'_Probably not._'

I was going to be a long night.

* * *

Betcha didn't think I could pop out another chapter like that, did ya? I was debating for awhile whether I should split it up, but then decided not to. All the good split up points were too early in the chapter so it would have been too short. I was hoping for a few more reviews on the last chapter I wrote, but it seems to just have been wishful thinking (thanks to the ones that did though). It'll be awhile before I write another scene like the one in chapter 6, and a full blown lemon is a ways away too. Well, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up, because I'm trying to decide on what scenes should come next. And school starts up again on Monday too (I need to work harder this semester to make up for the last one), so that's gonna slow me down even more. There will be a pic up for the scene between Inukigo and Kouga right after their race, I have to clean it up a bit first though. You will be able to find it on my site, as well as www(dot)theotaku(dot)com, and maybe onwww(dot)mediaminer(dot)org.Until next time!

Ja ne!!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

'_I can't believe him. He made it sound like I was a whore or something. How dare he?_'

Hours had passed and Inukigo was still sitting in the same tree, brooding over the hurtful words that Inuyasha had said to her.

She had known that he would be angry, it just wasn't proper for a male to be so close to a female - especially in the state that she had been in - when there was no mark between the two. Add to that the fact that there was no courtship of any kind going on either, and well, there was no way that the outcome could have been good.

Inukigo's face fell when she remembered the angry look Inuyasha had had on his face when he had been yelling at her. Her emotionless mask had fallen shortly after she had jumped into the tree, but she knew it would be up again before she went down. She didn't know why she did it, it was something that just happened when Inuyasha yelled at her in the way that he had. She completely closed herself off to everyone for however long it would take for her to forgive Inuyasha.

He was her alpha, so she knew that he had the right to question her about such things, like why Kouga's scent was all over her, and that wasn't the reason that she was upset. It was the way he had handled it that made her mad. He had used his position as alpha to force her to act like a submissive pup. The speed of her submission had be ridiculous, she could usually stare him down until he used some physical method to make her submit, but his tone and the look on his face just made her crumble. It made her feel like the small, helpless pup that he was treating her like and she hated it with every fibre of her being.

'_If he thinks that he will be easily forgiven, he's going to be sorely disappointed._'

* * *

Inuyasha awoke to the bright, early morning sun light shining in his eyes. He was surprised by how deeply he had slept, although he guessed it had something to do with Kagome sleeping in his arms. It had taken some convincing but he had managed to get her back into his arms. He sighed as he looked down at her face. He didn't want to wake her, but he had to check on Inukigo. He very much doubted that he was forgiven, but he had to make sure she was alright.

"Kagome," he whispered, shaking her lightly.

"Hmm…" Kagome groaned and shifted, but didn't wake up.

Inuyasha chuckled quietly.

'_Looks like she doesn't want to wake up either. Now, how can I get her to wake up?_'

He thought on it for a few moments before he got an idea.

'_Should I do it though? Oh, what the hell, I'll go for it. I just hope that she doesn't decide to sit me for it._'

Inuyasha glanced around to make sure no one else was awake and then leaned down to put his plan into action.

He began to trail slow kisses along Kagome's chin and travelled up her jaw line until he reached her ear. Kagome stirred as he moved, shifting her head to give him more access to the area he was kissing, but didn't wake up.

"Kagome," he whispered again, this time right in her ear.

"Inu…yasha," Kagome sighed in her sleep.

'_So you recognize me even in your sleep,_' he thought smugly.

He started to lavish attention on her neck, just below her ear. Kagome groaned again, and Inuyasha released her neck long enough to whisper in her ear again.

"C'mon Kagome, time to wake up."

Kagome began to come awake slowly and tilted her head to the side to rest it further on his shoulder, which greatly exposed the mark on her left shoulder to Inuyasha's eyes. He studied it for a moment before a smirk broke across his face. He leaned in and gave the mark one long, slow swipe with his tongue. Kagome's reaction was immediate, and exactly what he had expected. She moaned loudly and jerked in his arms, than started completely awake and blushed when she saw him looking at her with a sly grin on his face.

"Good morning," he said smugly.

Kagome gave him a measuring look before breaking out in a grin and going for his neck. She pulled his haori away before he could realize what she was doing and planted her mouth on his mark and giving it a wet, sucking kiss. Inuyasha growled lowly and shuddered at the feeling. Kagome released his neck after a few moments and looked up to see the glazed over look in his eyes. She smiled before moving so she could sit up on her knees, and then leaned up to kiss his lips. Inuyasha kissed her back immediately. The kiss wasn't heated, but passionate all the same. Kagome was the one to pull back and she smiled at him sweetly.

"Good morning."

Inuyasha grinned lazily and leaned forward to peck her on the lips again before leaning back against the tree. Kagome's smile grew wider.

"I think that I like waking up like this," she said dreamily as she wrapped her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers in his hair.

"Is that so?" he asked, bringing his arms around her waist, "I'll have to remember that then."

Kagome giggled and Inuyasha kissed her again. When they broke apart, Inuyasha stood up, pulling Kagome up with him. She looked at him curiously and he smiled at her.

"As much as I would like to stay right where we are and keep kissing you, I have to check on my sister."

Kagome let her arms drop to her sides as he released her waist.

"She hasn't come down yet?"

Inuyasha shook his head sadly.

"No. She's still up there. I'm gonna go up and see how she's doing. I'll see if I can do anything to get her out of that damned tree."

"Alright," Kagome answered giving him a reassuring smile.

Inuyasha returned the smile as best he could then turned and walked towards the tree that he knew that his sister was occupying. The tree was massive, and it took him two leaps to reach where she was sitting. She didn't acknowledge him, but he knew that there was no way that she didn't know that he was there. She had that dreaded emotionless mask in place, but he could tell that she had exhausted herself by brooding all night long over what he had done.

'_I'm such a moron. Why can't I ever keep my big mouth shut?_'

"Hey, Inukigo?" he asked timidly.

Inukigo didn't answer him and kept her head turned away. He sighed dejectedly.

'_This again? I hate the silent treatment._'

"Are you gonna come down and eat before we pack up and leave?"

No answer.

"Kagome is really worried about you. I think she might want to talk to you."

Inukigo's answer was to turn away from him and sit with both her legs draped over one side of the wide branch. Inuyasha's ears drooped from her refusal to show him acknowledgement. He inched his way closer to her, not wanting her to feel cornered and flee.

"I'm worried about you too," he said, looking down at the branch that he was crouched on, "And I've already told you that I'm sorry for what I said, so there's really nothing more I can say to you. But I'll say it again. I didn't mean what I said, and I…I'm sorry for it."

Inukigo didn't turn to look at him, but did give him a reply this time.

"I know that you're sorry and didn't mean it," Inuyasha's ears perked up, and he thought for a moment that he had been forgiven, "But…" his hopes diminished at that word, "That doesn't change the fact that those words made me feel like dirt."

As soon as she said that, she dropped from the branch onto a lower one and then bounded off to a different tree. Inuyasha watched her go sadly before dropping from the branch as well, and made his way back down to the ground. When he landed, five pairs of eyes turned to him. He focused on Kagome, who looked a little flustered, and shook his head no, then walked over to sit by the fire with them while he waited for breakfast. Kagome handed him his food and looked at him with concern.

"So she won't come down?" she asked.

He shook his head again.

"No, she's not ready yet. She probably won't travel with us either," he replied and took a bite of his fish.

"She won't? Than what will we do? We can't leave her behind."

"We won't. She'll still follow along, but she'll stay out of sight for awhile."

"Oh. How long do you think she'll be acting that way?"

Inuyasha shrugged and swallowed another mouthful of fish.

"Can't say for sure. Could be anywhere from a day to a week, depending on how mad she is at me."

"You sound very sure of that Inuyasha," Miroku piped up.

Inuyasha turned to glower at the monk.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I've had experience with these situations, so I know how my sister will act."

"Oh? Anything that you wish to share?"

Inuyasha began to growl.

"Not with you."

Miroku shrugged as if he had been expecting that answer.

"Well, I suppose you will be sharing it with Kagome then."

The tone of Miroku's voice made Inuyasha look at him suspiciously. He sounded as though he were trying to imply something.

"Ooi…what exactly are you trying to get at?"

Miroku shrugged again and feigned innocence.

"I was not trying to get at anything. I was simply referring to the fact that you and Kagome are now intended. I'm sure that the two of you will be _sharing _many things with each other from now on."

A light flush came to Inuyasha's cheeks and his glower darkened.

'_I knew it. The dirty hentai,_' he glanced at Kagome and saw that her blush was returning, '_So, she was getting an interrogation while I was in the tree. I know what you're trying to do monk, you ain't gettin' your way this time._'

Instead of getting flustered and tongue-tied like he normally would, Inuyasha did something that shocked everyone else present. He wrapped an arm around Kagome's waist and pulled her to him so that she was pressed tightly against his side. Kagome gave a little 'eep' in surprise, but he ignored it. Then he **_agreed _**with what Miroku had suggested.

"Well, now that she is my intended, of course I will be sharing more things with her. Probably not what you're thinking of right now though, I'm sure," he then turned his head and kissed her temple lightly. He then turned back to look at Miroku, "Don't have a problem with that, do you bouzu?"

Miroku laughed nervously and held up his hands in a placating gesture.

"None whatsoever, Inuyasha. Congratulations to the both of you."

"Yes, congratulations," Sango added, glad that Miroku had decided to drop the issue, "I'm so happy for the both of you."

"Arigatou, Sango-chan, Miroku-sama," Kagome said, still a little embarrassed by Inuyasha's open display of affection.

"Yeah, thanks," Inuyasha said.

They all went back to eating their meal, and it wasn't until they were finished and breaking camp that Inuyasha noticed that Shippou was being unusually quiet. He focused his attention on the kit and saw that he was sitting off to the side, half-heartedly playing with one of his toys. The little guy looked a bit put out.

'_He really has become attached to Inukigo. And I'm surprised by how taken she is with him. I never thought she would be one to be so good with pups. She mothers him almost as much as Kagome does, and now he probably feels like she's left him._'

"He's been acting that way all morning," Kagome said as she walked up behind him, backpack in tow, "I tried talking to him, but he wouldn't tell me what was wrong."

"He's probably missing Inukigo. He's gotten pretty close to her over the last little while."

"You think so? I noticed it too," Kagome positioned herself on his back as he offered it to her, "He seems to be really upset that she's not with us."

"Yeah. He should know that she's still around. I think that it's her presence that he's missing," Inuyasha replied as he hiked Kagome's legs up his waist and gripped the backs of her knees.

Kagome nodded against his shoulder than whispered so only he could hear.

"You too, right?" he didn't answer, so she took his silence as confirmation, "You will tell me, right Inuyasha?"

He looked uncomfortable for a moment and shifted his feet a little. Kagome waited, knowing that he was getting ready to give her an answer.

"H-Hai, but later. I don't want the others to hear."

Kagome smiled and squeezed his shoulders reassuringly.

"That's fine Inuyasha," she then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek when no one was watching.

Inuyasha smiled and then took off in a run with Miroku, Sango, and Shippou following on a transformed Kirara. They were travelling for about half an hour when Kagome spoke to him again.

"Is she following, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha had known that Inukigo was following from the moment the left camp. He could feel the presence of her youki, and stretched out his senses to determine her exact location. He couldn't catch her scent because she was down wind, but he could hear her leaping from branch to branch in the trees.

"Yeah, she's following. She's a little behind us, and is sticking high in the trees."

Kagome nodded that she understood and settled back down on his back. All was silent for some time, so Inuyasha surprised Kagome when he started to speak.

"Those situations with Inukigo that I was talking about…" he paused for a moment to make sure she knew what he was referring to. Kagome's eyes widened. She wasn't expecting him to tell her now, but she didn't dare stop him. She probably wouldn't be able to convince him later. She squeezed his shoulders to signal that she was listening and he continued.

"Well, they've only happened a few times. There have been times when she's done something very foolish, and I just end up…blowing up at her. A few times I found out that I was…in the wrong and shouldn't have handled it the way I did, but by then she's pissed off and won't speak to me."

"Like now?" Kagome ventured.

Inuyasha nodded.

"Yeah, but there have been worse times," he paused for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts, "The worst one was a few years before I was sealed. We were being chased by a group of demons and got separated. It took awhile to find her again, but when I did, I saw that she was picking a fight with a demon that she had no chance of beating on her own. I took it by surprise and managed to kill it just before it took her head off. I got mad, and yelled at her like I did last night, thinking that she had just picked a fight for the hell of it. She closed herself off for a whole week - she wouldn't speak to me or look at me the entire time. And then I found out the reason she had been fighting with the demon. Turns out he was terrorizing a nearby village, stealing girls and having his way with them before he killed them. Inukigo had come across him and a girl that he had just kidnapped. If I had been paying attention, I would have noticed the scent of the human that Inukigo had helped escape."

"So basically, you didn't think before you spoke."

Kagome knew that she was right when Inuyasha didn't reply.

"You have a bad habit of doing that, you know?"

Inuyasha glared at her over his shoulder.

"Ooi, bitch. Who's side are you on?"

"Yours, baka. I'm just saying that if you use this," she knocked her fist lightly against the back of his head, "Before you open your mouth, things will turn out better in the end."

"Keh!"

He knew that she was right, so didn't fight it any further.

"Thank you for telling me, Inuyasha," Kagome said quietly.

Inuyasha smiled, but kept his eyes on the path ahead.

"I said that I would share things with you, and I meant it. Just, don't expect it all at once."

Kagome smiled and nodded against his shoulder. They fell into a comfortable silence, and Inuyasha focused his senses ahead of them to keep a look out for danger, which was why he didn't notice when his sister's footfalls stopped abruptly and then drifted away as she veered off away from the rest of the group.

* * *

Inukigo knew that she was probably making a mistake by running off from the group but there wasn't really much she could do to stop herself. The scent that she had gotten just the tiniest whiff of had effectively drawn her away. Her nose was just the slightest bit more sensitive than Inuyasha's, which was the reason why she had caught it while he had not.

'_It's very faint, but I know that it's him. I'd never forget his scent._'

She came upon a tiny clearing, where a small pit had been dug out for a fire.

'_That's funny, why would there be a fire here? He's never had the need for one before._'

She took a few experimental sniffs and was shocked by what she discovered.

"A human?" she sniffed again, "A human **_child_**! A little girl by the smell of it. Why in the world does Sesshoumaru have a little girl with him?"

It was Sesshoumaru's scent that she had caught while she was running behind her brother and the rest of the group. It had been very faint, but enough to spark her interest and she had taken off towards it. She knew that the scent was old, and that she wasn't risking an encounter, which had been why she had no qualms with running off towards it on her own. Even in this clearing, where he had obviously spent a night while the human girl was resting, his scent was fading, telling her that it had been a few days since he had been there, and by now was long gone.

'_With any luck, he'll be far enough away that he won't pick up our scents._'

Inukigo thought for a moment, then scoffed.

'_Like that would make any difference. Probably wouldn't spare us a second glance anyways. Pompous bastard._'

Inukigo sighed sadly, then walked over to a tree and sat down at it's base. Sesshoumaru's scent was strongest here, meaning that he had sat there while the human child in his company was resting. She huddled back into the tree, taking in the quickly fading scent of the taiyoukai. She was surprised when instead of the anger she was used to feeling, a deep feeling of sadness came over her as the scent reawakened memories that she had worked hard to lock away.

'_Why did you have to start hating us so much, Aniue? Why couldn't things have stayed like they always were? I miss how things used to be so much, it hurts to remember. I miss…being close to you._'

Inukigo allowed herself a few moments, before forcing herself to her feet and stretching.

'_I have to put these things behind me. I'm letting it get to me way too much. I will confront Sesshoumaru, but not now. I don't think I'm ready yet._'

With that thought, Inukigo started running back towards the scents of her brother and friends. As soon as she caught it, she was surprised to find another scent mixed in - the scent of demons.

"Kuso," she cursed as she picked up her pace, "They must have ran into a pack of demons, it smells like there's more than one. I'm sure that they'll be fine, but I better hurry. If I don't, they won't leave any for me!"

Shortly after Inukigo had run off, Kagome informed the group that she sensed a number of jewel shards closing in on them, and Inuyasha confirmed that he could smell the demons up ahead, but neither of them could determine the exact number of demons that they would be running into. A few moments later, Inuyasha was forced to skid to a stop as an oni with a large club broke through the trees and stopped directly in his path. The oni made to smash him with the club, but Inuyasha was too fast for it and jumped clear of the heavy weapon. He made to put Kagome down a safe distance away, but was forced to jump away again, as another oni jumped out of the trees.

"They both have Shikon shards Inuyasha! And I can sense more still in the forest. I'm not sure how many though, they're too close together."

Inuyasha nodded indicating that he understood.

"Yeah, I can smell them all over this place. They must have been waiting for us."

Miroku, Sango, and Kirara had already engaged in battle against the first two oni, when two more appeared from the forest as well. A look to Kagome and it was confirmed that these had Shikon shards as well.

"This was definitely meant to be an ambush. How much do you wanna bet that Naraku is behind this too?"

"I think you're right," a sudden thought then dawned on Kagome, "Inuyasha, where's Inukigo?"

"Huh?" Inuyasha questioned, looking around. Kagome was right, Inukigo was missing, "Where in the Hell did she go?"

Kagome looked worried.

"Do you think she could be fighting with one out in the forest?"

Inuyasha focused his senses on the surrounding forest, tuning out the sounds of battle.

"No, there's nothing out there."

"Where could she have gone."

Inuyasha was worried as well, but he didn't want Kagome to know he was upset. He looked over at the others, who seemed to be having a bit of trouble with the four onis. He needed to go help them, but was worried about leaving Kagome on her own. In the end he decided that she would be alright if she kept her distance, that way she would have time to fire her arrows if need be.

"I'm gonna go help. Keep an eye out okay?"

Kagome nodded.

"I will. Be careful."

"Aa. You too."

Inuyasha ran off into the fray, and with his help, they began to beat the onis back. He managed to kill one, and was turning to see how the others were faring, and paled at what he saw. A large oni, bigger than the ones that they were fighting was stalking out of the forest right behind Kagome, and she was so focused on the battle in front of her that she didn't even notice.

"KAGOME! WATCH OUT!" he yelled, and made to take off towards her as she turned around to see what he was talking about. With his attention focused on Kagome, he never noticed the heavy club coming at him until it had collided with his back, and sent him crashing to the ground. He got his head up in time to see the oni raise the club, about to strike Kagome, who had turned around and was now frozen with fear.

"KAGOME! RUN AWAY!"

Kagome was unable to move, and Inuyasha tried to scramble to his feet in time to stop the massive club that was rapidly descending towards her.

"KAGOME!"

Everything happened in a split second. One moment, the oni's club was about to strike Kagome, and the next its arm was severed by a massive sword as it flew by. The oni's club and arm dropped to the ground just inches in front of Kagome and she fell to the ground as her legs gave out from the shock of the close call. Inuyasha didn't question the intervention - he had recognized the sword - and was quick to pick Kagome up and move her away from the now howling oni.

"Kagome. Kagome, are you alright? Are you hurt?"

Kagome shook her head, still amazed by her close brush with death.

"What just happened?" she questioned when she got her breath back.

Inuyasha didn't answer but looked off in the direction the sword had come from. Kagome followed his line of sight in time to see Inukigo proudly stepping from the trees. Inuyasha shot her an annoyed glare.

'_Always the show off. What's with that entrance?_'

The oni had stopped screaming and was now clutching what was left of it's arm as it caught sight of Inukigo and began roaring.

"How dare you, hanyou bitch! You will pay!"

Inukigo looked at the oni and replied with a bored tone.

"I think that you're mistaken. You will be the one to pay with your life, for daring to attack the future alpha female of my pack."

Kagome blushed and looked at Inuyasha to see that he had the same embarrassed look on his face. Inukigo didn't seem to be bothered by what she had said and turned to look at the others.

"Miroku, Sango," she called at the two looked at her, since the onis had stopped fighting when the larger one had been injured, "Take Kirara and stay with Kagome."

They looked like they were about to object but then she looked at Inuyasha.

"What do you think, Inuyasha? How about we double team 'em?"

Inuyasha looked thoughtful for a moment, then smirked when he caught on to what she was saying. He turned to look at Miroku and Sango.

"It's alright. You can do as she said."

"But, Inuyasha…" Kagome said with concern.

"It'll be okay," he whispered to her, "We used to do this all the time. Just watch."

Kagome looked as though she wanted to object, but when Miroku, Sango, and Kirara came to stand beside her she decided that she would go along with it.

"Okay, but promise me that the two of you will be careful."

Inuyasha gave her a loving grin.

"Of course."

Kagome took his word for it and walked off to the side with Sango, Miroku, Kirara, and Shippou, who had just popped out from his hiding place in the bushes. Inukigo walked over to Inuyasha, her back to his, facing the three smaller onis, while he stared down the larger one. The demons were starting to advance on them when Inuyasha spoke to her quietly.

"So, I guess this means you're not mad at me anymore?"

Inukigo smirked, though Inuyasha couldn't see it.

"Nah. Why would I be mad, when I have this fight to look forward to?"

Inuyasha chuckled at her response.

"I guess you're right. You ready?"

"Always. I'm heading in the direction of Touitsaiga, so you take the other way."

Inuyasha nodded once to single his understanding.

"Okay…Now!"

Both hanyous shot off in a blur, Inukigo heading in the direction of her sword, and Inuyasha going directly opposite. Everyone was confused, having expected them to jump directly at their respective targets. Both Inuyasha and Inukigo reached the trees at the same time, having kicked off the ground only moments earlier and land against the trunk so they could gain momentum by pushing off of the tree. Inukigo chose the tree that Touitsaiga was imbedded in, and pulled it out without slowing down as she kicked off. She and Inuyasha were so perfectly synchronized, Kagome had to wonder if they had practiced doing this when they were younger. Inuyasha pulled out Tessaiga on the way back, and they both reached their starting point at the same time. Kagome, Miroku, and Sango thought that they would now rush at their targets, but Inuyasha and Inukigo surprised them again. Inuyasha came to a stop at the exact moment Inukigo reached him and grabbed her free hand. Their combined momentum made him spin around, and he went with it, using it to make her go faster until he literally threw her at the three oni that didn't know what hit them.

Inukigo kept low to the ground as she swept between the onis, slashing at them with her claws and sword as she passed by. The demons howled as they were torn into by the red, white, and silver blur. Before they knew what was happening, Inukigo was on her way back after kicking off of another tree, and she ripped through them again. Meanwhile, Inuyasha had darted off towards the larger demon, dodging its clumsy, one armed swipe to push off a tree directly behind it. He clawed at it's side as he passed by it again, and when he reached the starting point again, it was Inukigo's turn to throw him. There was still momentum conserved from when he had thrown her, so when she hurled him at the larger demon, he was travelling even faster than she had. They continued to do this, taking turns throwing each other at their enemies, gaining more speed on each pass until they were nearly impossible to see.

Kagome just stared as the four demons were slowly ripped apart by a seemingly invisible force.

"I-I never knew they were so fast," she said in awe.

Miroku watched the one-sided battle before them for a few moments before making a comment.

"They're not."

"Huh?" Kagome asked, confused.

"They're not really as fast as them seem."

"What do you mean, Miroku-sama?"

Miroku pointed at one spot on the battlefield, directly between the group of smaller oni and the larger one.

"Watch that spot very carefully, and then I'll explain."

Kagome did as she was told, and stared at the spot he had indicated. After a few seconds she saw Inuyasha and Inukigo standing there for a split second, before they were gone. Moments later, she saw them again in the very same place.

"What are they doing, Miroku-sama?"

"They're throwing each other to gain speed then bouncing back from the trees and doing it again. It's false speed, but effective nonetheless."

Sango nodded in agreement.

"They seem to be very familiar with the technique. Their timing is perfect. They both have to reach that spot at exactly the same time, or they'll miss the throw and lose the speed they've gained, and possibly leave them open for an attack."

"Wow," Kagome said, still watching the battle in amazement, "Inuyasha said they used to do this all the time. I suppose that's how they got so good at it."

"Well, they do seem to be enjoying themselves," Shippou commented from his place on Kirara's head.

"What do you mean, Shippou-chan?" Kagome asked.

"My eyesight and hearing are sharper than yours. I can still see them a bit and I can hear them perfectly. The two of them are laughing."

"Laughing?" Kagome questioned, turning to look at Miroku and Sango, "Are they taking pleasure in killing those youkai so slowly?"

Miroku didn't look like he knew what to tell her, but Sango did have some reassurance for her.

"I don't think they are Kagome-chan. I think that they might be playing."

"Playing? As in playing with them?"

Sango shook her head.

"No, I mean playing with each other. From what I've learned about dog-demon behaviour, they love the feel of the wind in their face. The technique that the two of them are using now is probably something they developed as a game when they were younger to do that. I'd say that they'd be enjoying themselves and laughing even if the demons weren't there."

Kagome nodded in understanding.

"I think I see what you mean."

Everyone's attention was drawn back to the battle as they heard a loud 'whoop' that sounded like it had come from Inukigo. They were surprised to see her in the air. It looked as though they were finishing off their 'game', Inuyasha had already killed the larger demon after throwing Inukigo up into the air instead of at the group of demons she was fighting. He stood up and sheathed Tessaiga as he watched her plummet back down towards her targets. One horizontal and two vertical slashes later, all three onis were laying dead on the ground. Inukigo sheathed her sword as well, and looked happily refreshed after working out her frustration during the fight.

She and Inuyasha made their way back to the group, and when they stopped, Inukigo was smiling and bouncing on the balls of her feet. Everyone had to smile because it was a nice change from her mood earlier that morning.

"It is nice to see you once again in bright spirits, Inukigo," Miroku commented with a smile.

Inukigo smiled a little wider.

"Thanks. I feel much better now. It was just what I needed to put me in a good mood."

She didn't even flinch as a fluffy-tailed child crashed into her chest. She lifted her arms to support him so he wouldn't have to cling to her form, and smiled down at him.

"So, what did you think of that Shippou?"

Shippou looked back up at her with brightly shining eyes.

"Sugoi! That was so cool! Can you show me how to do that?"

Inukigo chuckled lightly, recognizing the word from Kagome's era.

"I think we should wait until you get a little bigger Shippou. You'll get hurt if we start tossing you around like that."

Shippou pouted and crossed his arms, and Inukigo was hard pressed to hold back her laughter. The resemblance to Inuyasha was uncanny. She ruffled his hair and held him a little bit closer.

"Don't worry. I'll be sure to show you how to do it as soon as you're big enough. Some other stuff too."

Shippou's expression brightened and he began to bounce with excitement in her arms. Inukigo had to laugh this time, as did Sango and Miroku.

"Really?"

At Inukigo's nod he continued.

"How big to I have to be?"

Inukigo lifted him with one arm to place him on her shoulder and then placed a finger on the side of her chin in a thoughtful pose.

"Well…for the toss you'll have to be about this big," she said, moving one hand level with her hip. Shippou was a little disappointed because it would be a few years before he grew to that height. Seeing his put out expression, Inukigo quickly moved to fix it.

"But some of the other stuff that I have in mind is perfect for right now. We could start as soon as we get back to the village, if you want."

Shippou's mood shifted again and he looked at her from his place on her shoulder.

"Really?"

"Yup," Inukigo answered with a nod.

She stilled when she felt two small arms wrap tightly around her neck.

"Arigatou!"

Inukigo wasn't sure what to do. She'd never experienced this type of affection before. She remembered the affection she had received from her parents when she was a small pup, and the occasional times from Inuyasha, but she had never felt affection from a child. She felt a light flush come to her face from the attention. It was so pure and unaltered and innocent, that it brought a warm feeling to her chest, and a mistiness to her eyes that surprised her.

"Y-you're welcome," she replied after a few moments, reaching up with one hand to scratch his back.

Kagome, who had gone with Inuyasha to retrieve Shikon shards from the dead onis, looked up from putting the sixth and final shard in her little jar just in time to see the exchange. She grinned widely, and waved her hand at Inuyasha to catch his attention. He looked up at her, and then to where she was pointing and a small smile broke out on his face as well.

The smile disappeared and a look of shock came to his face when he smelled salt in the air. Kagome noticed the change and looked at him with concern.

"What is it?"

Inuyasha shook his head, almost not believing it. He knelt down next to Kagome and whispered in her ear.

"I can smell salt. Inukigo's eyes are tearing."

Kagome looked at him, equally shocked.

"Is she crying?"

"No, the scent's not strong enough. But there's something different about it. She doesn't smell sad."

Kagome smiled again.

"You don't need to be sad to cry. You can cry when your happy too, remember?"

Inuyasha had the good grace to blush and nod, recalling how he had cried the night before when Kagome had said that she loved him.

Inukigo was still holding Shippou against her shoulder, and was surprised by what the fox kit said to her next.

"I missed you."

Inukigo's hand stilled on Shippou's back as he squeezed her neck a little bit tighter.

"You did?" she asked softly as she turned her head to look at him as best she could, given their position. She felt Shippou nod into her neck and began walking slowly away from the group. The others were a little confused by her actions, thinking that she was going to wander away, but then she plopped down on the ground in a cross legged position with her back to all of them.

"Why did you miss me, Shippou? I wasn't very far."

"I know," he said timidly, "But I couldn't tell where you were, and I kept thinking that…you would run away like Kagome does when Inuyasha makes her mad. But she goes down the well, and…I didn't know where you would go when you were mad at Inuyasha."

"Oh, I see," Inukigo answered with a small smile while rubbing Shippou's back lightly. She stopped and pulled him gently from her shoulder so she could look him in the eyes.

"Well, now I know what we'll be working on first. This," she said, tweaking his nose, "Because you should have been able to catch my scent and find out where I was. And these," a tweak to both ears, "Because you should have been able to hear me moving through the trees. I wasn't being that stealthy."

Shippou blushed and lowered his head sheepishly. He knew what she was saying was right. He should have been able to do what she said, but his senses weren't that finely tuned because he had never been taught how to use them properly. His father had never had the chance, and Inuyasha never seemed too interested in teaching him how to do anything.

"Sorry," he said quietly.

"Oh, it's alright. There's nothing for you to be sorry for. Just between you and me," she whispered loudly, pulling him closer as if to tell him a huge secret, "When we were little, it took Inuyasha ages before he could tell the difference between my scent and his. We used to play games of hide-and-seek to sharpen our tracking skills, and he would follow his own scent around in circles sometimes when he was supposed to be looking for me."

Inukigo had said it loud enough so that everyone could hear her. Everyone except Inuyasha began to giggle lightly trying to not draw too much attention from the now growling half demon. Or in Shippou's case, laughing hysterically at the newfound information.

"Hey…" he growled out lowly while raising his fist, trying to pass off the blush on his face as anger instead of embarrassment.

Inukigo turned her head to look at him over her shoulder with wide, innocent eyes. Then her face split into an evil grin, which he easily translated as saying, 'the torture is only just beginning'.

'_Aw crap…why do I have the feeling that by the end of the day, every one of my embarrassing childhood stories will be common knowledge. If the Kamis were merciful, I would have my own rock to crawl under and die right about now…_'

* * *

After much grumbling on his part about Inukigo's fascination with embarrassing him, they had been on their way, but only after a kiss on the cheek and a feather-light touch to his mark from Kagome put him back in good spirits. Inuyasha had thought himself lucky, because not another word of their childhood was broadcasted to the rest of the group, that was until he noticed the whispers and childish giggles coming from his sister and Shippou's direction.

Shippou had decided to travel on Inukigo's shoulder, and every so often he heard the child giggle and was sure that his sister was revealing all sorts of embarrassing information about him. The thought of Shippou knowing all those things and rubbing them in his face later brought a scowl to his face and he began growling low in his throat. He hadn't even been aware of what he was doing until he felt Kagome's hands kneeding his shoulders in an attempt to catch his attention. He glanced at her over his shoulder, seeing a worried look in her eyes.

"What's wrong, Inuyasha?" she asked quietly, "You got all tense and then started growling."

He didn't say anything, but threw a hard glare towards Inukigo. Kagome followed his line of sight, still not understanding what had gotten him angry because she could not hear Shippou's soft laughter.

"I still don't get what's wrong," she told him.

Inuyasha sighed and glared at the path ahead of him.

"She's telling Shippou something. The runt keeps laughing."

"So what? She's probably just telling him stories."

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder at her again.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"What? Why?" she asked curiously. When he just blushed and turned away she figured it out, "Oh…you think she's telling stories about you."

Inuyasha grunted and nodded his head once sharply. Kagome rubbed his shoulders again in an attempt to sooth him.

"Are you sure that's what she's telling him?"

"Well, no…" Inuyasha replied honestly.

"She could be saying something else to him," she offered.

"That's not very likely," he replied, without taking his eyes off the path.

"Why do you say that?"

"She can be a damn vengeful bitch when she wants to be. When she's mad, she usually gives me the silent treatment, like she did earlier. But it looks like she's gonna do something different this time."

"Embarrass you?"

"Yeah."

"She wouldn't do that, would she?"

Inuyasha sent her a tolerant look.

'_I guess that means she would._'

"How many stories?"

"I don't know. I hope she sticks to the less embarrassing ones though."

"Yeah, I'm sure that she won't tell anyone else about the time…oops…" in her attempt to be reassuring, she had forgotten that he probably didn't need to know that Inukigo had told her about that.

Inuyasha blushed when he realized what she was about to say.

'_I forgot about that…_'

"Yeah…maybe she won't tell anyone else about that."

Kagome stilled, then leaned in closer to his shoulder.

"Inuyasha, you…"

"Yeah, I know that she told you," he replied, the blush still on his face, "She told me that she did. She was a bit groggy, so she didn't deny anything when I asked her why the two of you had been laughing."

Kagome blushed and lowered her head a little.

"I'm sorry, Inuyasha. I…"

"No, it's okay. I don't blame you for laughing at something like that," he paused for a moment then spoke again, "I suppose I should be grateful that she's only told you or Shippou anything…well, not counting what she said earlier."

Kagome wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his shoulder.

"It's no big deal, Inuyasha. Everyone has embarrassing childhood moments, me included. Don't worry about it too much."

Inuyasha grinned, spirits lifted by Kagome's reassurance.

"Oh, you did, did you? Care to share any?"

Kagome shook her head.

"Nuh-uh, no way. I'm not telling you. I'm honestly surprised that you haven't heard any from my family. Mama is notorious for doing stuff like that. I expected her to break out the baby pictures ages ago. Although, she'll probably do that as soon as we tell her that we're 'engaged'."

That reminded Inuyasha of something that he hadn't done, but should have. He had never asked permission to take Kagome as his intended. Normally, he would have to ask Kagome's father, but Kagome had told him not long after they met that he had died when she was a little girl, shortly after Souta was born. So he would have to ask permission from her mother. He didn't let those thoughts get to him though - he would be sure to ask as soon as they went back to her time.

"Baby pictures, huh? Can't wait to see those," he said with a mischievous grin on his face.

Kagome groaned and buried her face in his hair.

"Oh, why did I tell you that? Now you'll probably ask Mama to see them."

Inuyasha chuckled lightly and rubbed the sides of her thighs with his thumbs.

"You told me because you wanted to make me feel better, and you did, so thank you. And you're right, I probably will start asking your mother about those pictures. I'm curious to see what you were like as a pup."

"Really?" Kagome asked, bringing her head back up. Inuyasha nodded, "Well…if I show you the pictures and tell you some stories, will you tell me about…what you were like when you were little?"

Inuyasha grew silent. He wasn't sure if he wanted to talk about that. His childhood was full of painful memories, and he knew that she wanted to know about those too, not just the good times. He wondered what she would think, of some of the things that he had been through, and some of the things that he had had to do to ensure that he and Inukigo survived. Inuyasha felt Kagome's arms tighten around him and he knew then, that she would understand him. She wouldn't care about the things he had done, and she would be there for him when he talked about the hard times. He squeezed her thighs lightly and pulled her a little tighter to him.

"Alright," he agreed, "I think I can do that."

"I know that it's hard, remembering the painful times," she said, nuzzling her cheek against his, "But it helps to talk to someone about it."

"I know, you've told me that before," he replied, returned her gesture.

"I'm glad," she said, planting a light kiss to his neck. It didn't touch his mark, but it was close enough to make him shiver.

"Careful, bitch," he whispered, "Or you're gonna make me run into a tree or something."

Kagome giggled and propped her head up on his shoulder again.

"I didn't realize I was so distracting. I'll have to remember that."

"Keh!"

"Well, would you look at that," Miroku said from his place behind Sango on Kirara's back. They were flying a little above and behind Kagome and Inuyasha, and although they couldn't hear anything that they were saying, they had seen the whole exchange between the two.

"I see it," Sango replied, getting annoyed by her companion's nosiness.

"My, they're getting awfully friendly with each other down there aren't they?"

"Yes, they are," Sango said, then turned to glare at him, "And you will not utter one word."

Miroku looked slightly confused, but Sango knew better.

"Why, whatever do you mean, my dear Sango?"

She decided to ignore the 'my dear'.

"I mean, you will not say one word to Inuyasha about this. I know you well enough, Houshi-sama. As soon as we stop for the night, you'll start teasing him. You know that he has a difficult time expressing himself openly as it is, and if you make him feel self-conscious, he's going to stop all together. Inuyasha doesn't deserve that, and neither does Kagome-chan."

Kirara growled in agreement.

Miroku sighed and turned his head away.

"You are right Sango. They deserve to be able to express their feelings for each other. I'll not tease Inuyasha about it," he then turned to face her again, and Sango inwardly groaned when she saw the lecherous gleam in his eyes, "But I would be happy to give him some pointers."

"Do that," Sango said, raising her fist for him to see, "And I'll hit you hard enough to send you into next week."

Miroku raised one hand in defence and laughed nervously.

"What if he asks?"

"If he does that, which I highly doubt, than go ahead. But ONLY if he asks you."

"Hai, hai, Sango."

Satisfied that he was being serious, Sango nodded then turned to keep her eyes ahead of her. It was still only mid morning, and they would have a long day of travelling ahead of them.

* * *

Here's chapter 8, hope everyone liked it! I'm not sure when chapter 9 will be posted (school tends to take time away from writing), but I'll try to make it soon. Remember, reviews may have the tendency to make me write faster (again, with school that's no guarantee, but I'll try). Ja ne! 


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

A lunch break, one pit stop, and a whole lot of running, left the shard hunters stopping for the night in a small sheltered clearing. Kagome and Sango were setting about preparing vegetables and some rabbits Inuyasha had caught earlier, Miroku was seated nearby, making conversation with the two girls as the cooked, and Inuyasha was sitting quietly within arms reach of Kagome. Inukigo was dozing lightly near the fire on her stomach with her head pillowed on her arms, and was accompanied by Shippou and Kirara. Shippou had curled up and was napping between her shoulder blades, and Kirara had done the same at the small of her back.

Kagome had thought that the sight of the three of them was unbelievably cute, and had quickly rushed to her bag and dug out a disposable camera that she had brought along. She quickly snapped a picture, rolled the film, and deposited the camera back in her bag. Inukigo's left ear had flicked in her direction a few times, drawn by the strange sounds of the camera, but she never stirred from her position.

Inukigo woke up on her own when she scented the finished meal and stretched, careful to not dislodge the two small youkai on her back. Kirara woke as soon as Inukigo moved, stretched herself before walking off towards Sango. Shippou needed a little more coaxing, and Inukigo reached back to gently shake the kit awake so he would know that she was getting up. He didn't seem as though he wanted to move, and tried to push her hand away before shifting around and cuddling into her back again. Inukigo laughed and shook him a little harder.

"You can sleep later, Shippou. We're eating now."

Shippou mumbled something, but didn't move.

"If you don't get up, you're gonna fall off when I do."

No response. Inukigo sighed.

"Alright then," she said, then shifted around enough so she could sit up.

Shippou started awake when he hit the ground, not sure what had happened. Rubbing his head he turned to look up at Inukigo, who was still seated and peering over her shoulder at him.

"What did you do that for?" he half whined.

"I told you to get up," she said with a shrug, "Not my fault you didn't listen to me."

Shippou crossed his arms and pouted. Inukigo smiled at him and turned slightly so she could ruffle his hair. He tried to resist, but was soon smiling back at her. Inukigo dropped her hand then crawled the short distance to the fire. She seated herself next to Inuyasha and Shippou took his spot next to her. She accepted a small wooden bowl of food and chopsticks from Kagome and handed them off to Shippou, then took her own meal when it was handed to her.

Inuyasha had been watching Inukigo from the moment she woke up. He was once again amazed by how close she had grown to Shippou. She was so patient with him, well that didn't surprise him too much; she had infinite patience when compared to him. She acted the same way that Kagome did towards Shippou, and that made him wonder just how she was starting to see Shippou.

'_Her own pup maybe…? No, I don't think so…a pack-pup sounds better. Shippou seems to be the same way. He doesn't see her as a mother…Kagome fills that spot, but he does see Inukigo as family. He's been going to her whenever Kagome is occupied with something._'

"Inuyasha?"

"Huh?" Kagome's voice bringing him back to reality.

"Is something wrong? You haven't touched your food."

Inuyasha looked down to see the bowl and chopsticks in his hands that he had accepted without realizing.

"No, nothing's wrong."

"You sure? You were kinda spaced out there for a minute."

"I'm sure. I was just thinking. It wasn't anything really important," he answered, digging into his meal.

Kagome didn't look like she was really all that convinced, but shrugged and left him alone, eating her own meal. After inhaling two helpings, Inuyasha turned to Inukigo, drawing her attention away from her own food.

"I forgot to ask earlier…where the hell did you run off to when those demons attacked us? Took you an awful long time to join in the fight."

Inukigo turned her attention back to her bowl and started poking at her food.

"I didn't go anywhere. I was just a little behind you that's all. It took me time to get there."

Inuyasha sniffed the air discretely and picked up exactly what he expected to. The air around Inukigo was heavy with anxiety.

"Liar. You should know by now that lying to me doesn't work. I can smell it on you every time."

Inukigo looked at him from the corners of her eyes, a little peeved that she couldn't get away with anything around him.

"I smelled something and went to check it out. That's all."

Inuyasha didn't seem to be too satisfied with the information. By now everyone was paying attention to the two hanyous, interested in where the conversation was going.

"Oh? What was so interesting that it lured you away?"

Inukigo turned her head to glare at him, annoyance clearly written across her features.

"It wasn't anything important, just drop it."

Inuyasha snorted.

"Yeah, right. If it wasn't important than I wouldn't have to fight to get an answer from you. Spill it."

Inukigo shot to her feet angrily after smacking her bowl on the ground.

"Kami, Inuyasha! Ugh, fine! You wanna know so bad? It was Sesshoumaru's scent, alright!"

Inuyasha was up and glaring at her as soon as the words left her mouth.

"Sesshoumaru! What in the hell were you thinking, going off to confront him on your own!"

"Moron! Just stop and listen for a minute would you!" she yelled, poking him in the chest, "The scent was old! Sesshoumaru hadn't been there for days. How stupid do you think I am? I know not to go after him alone."

"You still shouldn't have went off. What if he had still been around? You know what he would have done if he had found you."

Inukigo growled and her fists tightened at her sides.

"Do you take me for a child! Of course I know what he would have done to me if he had been there! Do you think I could ever forget the things that he's done to me already!"

Inuyasha flinched. He was being such an idiot with her today.

"No, Inukigo. I didn't…"

Inukigo held up her hand to cut him off.

"Save it. Frankly, I'm too pissed off to accept any apology you can give me," Inuyasha's ears drooped as she walked around him and towards the tree line, "If you're gonna come after me, I suggest you wait until I stop thinking that you're an idiot. Otherwise I'll be sure to kick you out of the tree," she called back over her shoulder before jumping up and hiding herself among the branches.

Inuyasha plopped himself back down next to Kagome with a sigh. Kagome started to pat him on the back gently and he felt comforted by her touch. At least she didn't think he was a complete moron.

Across the fire, Miroku leaned over towards Sango and covered his mouth with one hand as he whispered to her.

"And I thought that he only fought like that with Kagome-sama…"

Sango nodded her head in agreement.

Inuyasha, having heard the comment, whipped his head towards them.

"Care to repeat that, monk?" he snarled.

Miroku held up his hands defensively and laughed nervously.

"No…my apologies, Inuyasha. I did not mean to offend."

"Keh!" Inuyasha grumbled, turning his head away. The action left him facing towards Shippou. The kit looked dejected again, just like he had that morning.

"Ooi, runt," he said, catching Shippou's attention, "What's the matter? She hasn't gone anywhere, just up in that tree," he added, pointing at said tree. Shippou didn't look appeased.

"Why do you have to do that."

Inuyasha frowned in confusion.

"Do what?"

"Why do you have to make her so mad that she goes away? You do the same thing to Kagome. You make her mad, then she goes away down the well. Why do you have to be so mean to everyone, you stupid jerk!"

Inuyasha flinched inwardly and turned away to look at his lap, trying to pretend, albeit unsuccessfully, that Shippou's words hadn't stung him.

"It's not like I mean to," he said gruffly.

Kagome easily saw through Inuyasha's act and draped one arm around his shoulders. Inuyasha glanced at her out of the corners of his eyes, a light flush coming across his face from her nearness.

"Shippou-chan," Kagome said, looking around Inuyasha to see him, "That's not fair. You know that Inuyasha doesn't try to make us angry. He was just worried about Inukigo-chan, and I go back to my time through the well anyways. He usually only makes me mad when he refuses to let me leave."

Inuyasha turned his head to glare at her. That last comment wasn't exactly in his favour. Kagome sensed his annoyance and squeezed his shoulder to placate him. He relaxed and leaned towards her almost unnoticeably. Shippou didn't look too happy about being reprimanded by Kagome, but didn't make any further comments.

There was a heavy silence over the came for a few moments before Inuyasha dared to glance over his shoulder at the trees behind him.

"Think I should go give it a try?" he asked Kagome.

"I don't know. It hasn't been very long," she replied, "Do you think she still might me mad at you?"

Inuyasha shrugged and stood up.

"Not sure. Might as well try though."

Kagome nodded to him and he walked towards the tree. Heaving a sigh he jumped up into the branches. He found Inukigo easily enough, she was sitting with her back to the trunk of the tree just as she was that morning. He was happy to see that she didn't have the cold, blank look on her face this time.

"Inukigo…?" he asked cautiously.

Inukigo looked at him, but didn't speak. Inuyasha took her silence as a good sign.

'_Okay, so she's not talking…but she didn't kick me out of the tree…that's good right?_'

He slowly inched his way closer to her, keeping his eyes on her face. She kept staring into his eyes, waiting.

"I'm ready when you are, Inuyasha," she said slowly.

He nodded his head and stopped moving towards her.

"You know that I was only worried about you running into Sesshoumaru on your own, right? I never meant to go far enough to make you upset."

Inukigo nodded in acknowledgement.

"I know," she turned her head away then looked at him from the corners of her eyes, "But that's not what I want to hear you say."

"Huh?" Inuyasha asked, tilting his head to one side, "What do you mean? What more do you want me to say?"

Inukigo turned to face him again, this time with a huge grin on her face.

"C'mon, Inuyasha, you should know…" she drawled.

Inuyasha narrowed his eyes at her then he realized what it was that she wanted.

"Sly bitch…you were never mad in the first place, were you? No way, you ain't gettin' me to say it," he huffed, crossing his arms and sticking his nose in the air.

Inukigo laughed at him.

"Alright, you caught me. But you will say it, if you want to get me out of this tree."

"Iie."

"I'm telling you, Inuyasha. Say it, or I'm not coming down out of the tree."

Inuyasha looked down at her, his face still turned upwards.

"Is that a fact?" he asked nonchalantly.

Inukigo nodded once, a stubborn scowl marring her face. Inuyasha moved faster than she expected him to. Before she could blink he had grabbed her around the waist and the both of them were falling out of the tree. They landed with a THUMP on the ground at the edge of the campsite, drawing the attention of their companions, not that either of them noticed. Inukigo was flat on her back and Inuyasha was looming over her. They hadn't been that far up the tree, so the fall didn't do any damage to either of them.

Inuyasha glared down at Inukigo, and Inukigo glared right back.

"Damn it, Inuyasha! What did you go and do that for!" she yelled, leaning up on one elbow as she tried to push him off. Inuyasha wouldn't move, "Inuyasha, get off!"

"No," he said flatly.

"What?"

"No, not until you understand this."

"Inuyasha, you're doing it again."

"No I'm not!" he yelled, grabbing her shoulders and pinning her to the ground. He looked down at her baring his fangs, "Don't you **_dare _**say that I'm overreacting. I wasn't overreacting before and I'm not overreacting now."

Inukigo rolled her eyes, obviously not agreeing with him. Inuyasha snarled and shook her roughly.

"You will take me seriously," he growled out, making sure that her attention was focused completely on him, "Damn it, Inukigo. How can you say that I was overreacting, when you did something so stupid! What if Sesshoumaru had found you, huh? What then? What do you really think that he would have done to you?"

He didn't give Inukigo the chance to answer before he was going off again.

"Well I know. He would have killed you. He would have done it without hesitation. How can you say that I'm overreacting when I'm thinking about that? How can you, when I'm worried that I'll find you half dead like I did last time, or worse!"

Inukigo stared back up at him with wide eyes. She had never thought about how Inuyasha felt that time, finding her beaten and bloody in the middle of a field. What must it have done to him, to see her that way and know who had caused it? How could she have been so foolish to not consider it before? Inuyasha was still staring down at her, willing her to understand what he was saying and feeling. Inukigo's eyes shifted back and forth before final dropping away from his. Inuyasha sighed, satisfied that she had submitted, and leaned back so she could get up. She sat up, her head lowered.

"I'm sorry," he heard her mutter quietly, and he kept all his senses focused on her, "I never thought about it that way. I won't do it anymore."

"Good," Inuyasha said, standing up…and finally noticing their audience, "Aw, shit," he cursed quietly.

Inukigo lifted her head to see what he was looking at, then blushed when she saw the four pairs of eyes that were staring back at them.

"Oh hell…this is all your fault!" she cried out, smacking Inuyasha on the back of the leg.

Inuyasha pitched forward slightly. She had caught him off guard with that shot to the back of his knee, and she had put a good amount of force behind it.

"Ooi! How is it my fault!"

"You were the one that made us fall out of the tree!"

"Baka! You said you weren't going to come down! What difference does that make anyway? They would have heard us even if we stayed up there!"

"Teme…" Inukigo growled, clenching her raised fist.

"Ahem!"

Inuyasha and Inukigo immediately stopped what they were doing and turned their attention to the rest of the group at Miroku's cough.

"As entertaining as it is to watch the two of you bicker," he was interrupted by the growling of the two hanyous, which he ignored, "It would be nice to hear an explanation for all this."

The others nodded in agreement. Inuyasha and Inukigo exchanged nervous glances, knowing that they wouldn't get out of this without giving up something. They both seemed to be silently debating who would be the one to tell them, until Inukigo finally conceded and turned to face the rest of her companions.

"Alright, seeing as how you probably won't give up until you find out something, I'll tell you what we're talking about," she took a deep breath as she prepared to spill the story, "Basically, Sesshoumaru hates my guts," they didn't seem too phased by that, "More than Inuyasha's," that piqued their interest, "Every time that we've every run into him he's tried to kill us, or at least inflict bodily harm, but he's always given me the worst of it. The last time I met up with him, I was by myself, and he left me half dead in the middle of a field. Then, Inuyasha found me. There, end of story."

Her audience looked as though they were going to protest the lack of information, but she cut off their complaints.

"That's all you're getting. If you don't like it, too bad."

The group conceded, guessing that it was a personal matter that Inukigo didn't really feel comfortable sharing. Inuyasha leaned up behind her and whispered so that only she could pick it up.

"If I had known that was all you were gonna say I could have done it."

Inukigo growled lowly and whispered back.

"Oh, shut up," then she continued a little more softly, "If Kagome asks later, you can tell her the whole story…if you want to."

Inuyasha looked at her incredulously.

"Are you sure?"

Inukigo nodded her head slightly.

"Yeah, I don't mind. I don't know why, but it won't bother me if Kagome knows. I'll tell the others about it…eventually, I just…can't right now."

"Okay."

Their quiet conversation was unknowingly interrupted by Miroku.

"I suppose then, that this was the reason for you becoming upset when we compared you to Sesshoumaru before?"

Inukigo stiffened. She should have known that they would dig for more information. She sighed before nodding her head.

"Hai."

'_Well, that's not the whole story, but they don't need to know that yet._'

Miroku nodded, signalling that his curiosity was satisfied for the time being.

'_Good, they're not gonna ask anymore._'

Inukigo strode over to the fire and flopped down next to it on her side. She absentmindedly stared into the flames, her mind falling back to the argument that she and Inuyasha had just had. She was so lost in her thoughts that she never noticed Shippou walk over and curl up next to her, nor did she notice when she started smoothing her fingers through his hair.

'_Forgive me, Inuyasha,_' she thought, sullenly, '_I'll make up for my stupidity, I promise._'

* * *

A few hours later, everyone in the campsite was sleeping, except Inuyasha, Kagome, and Inukigo. Kagome was snuggled in Inuyasha's lap while he leaned against the base of a tree. Inukigo was still lying on her side facing the now waning fire, her back to Inuyasha and Kagome.

Inuyasha and Kagome had been sitting quietly for some time, but Inuyasha could tell that she wanted to ask him something. She was fidgeting, and kept toying with her clothes and fingers, like she was trying to prepare herself to speak, and he had a pretty good idea of what it was she wanted to ask. There was only so much he could take before he grabbed her hands to still them. Kagome's head shot up to look at him, a light flush on her face that had Inuyasha smiling in amusement.

"If there was something you wanted to ask Kagome, you can go ahead."

The blush on Kagome's face darkened and Inuyasha couldn't help the chuckle that escaped. Kagome frowned at him for laughing, but didn't say anything about it. Instead she looked down at her lap and began to speak hesitantly.

"Well…there is one thing that I wanted to ask you about."

"Oh?" he said innocently, though he already knew very well what she wanted.

"I was wondering…if you would tell me more about…what that argument you had with Inukigo-chan was about."

Inuyasha nodded against her hair.

"I had a feeling that was what you wanted."

Kagome pulled back from him so she could look up.

"If you don't want to tell me, that's okay. I would just like to know."

Inuyasha smiled and brushed a hand over her cheek before tucking her hair behind her ear. Kagome smiled at his display of affection.

"I can tell you. Inukigo gave me permission earlier. She must have guessed that you would want a better explanation than the one she gave."

"Would you have told me if she hadn't given permission?" Kagome asked, tilting her head to one side.

Inuyasha shook his head in response.

"No. It's something that she has a hard time with, and is apparently something that she doesn't want many people to know."

He heard a quiet 'humph' come from his sister's direction, but ignored her.

"Was what Sesshoumaru did to her that awful?" Kagome asked sadly.

Inuyasha nodded as a grimace came to his face.

"The bastard tortured her," Kagome could feel him gripping the back of her shirt tightly and could tell from his posture that on the inside he was raging.

She reached up and rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, trying to calm him and ease some of his tension. Inuyasha sighed as his shoulders slumped. He knew it wouldn't be a good idea to blow up during the explanation. He took a deep breath before he continued.

"In the beginning, Sesshoumaru would only attack me, and completely ignored Inukigo. We found out it was because he didn't deem her worthy of his attention. The bastard treated her as if she were invisible."

Kagome's eyes widened. She knew that a normal person would be all too happy if a demon like Sesshoumaru ignored them during a fight, but Inuyasha and Inukigo were not normal people. They were fighters, and to be ignored during a battle would be a huge blow to their pride and would probably cut them deeper than she could imagine. But there was one thing that nagged at her.

"Inuyasha, why was it that Sesshoumaru ignored only Inukigo? Why not ignore the both of you?"

Inuyasha wasn't sure if he should answer that question. It wasn't really his place to share that information, and he didn't know if Inukigo would object to it. The decision was made for him, however.

"He did it because…I…worshipped him."

Inuyasha looked over Kagome's shoulder, and Kagome turned around, both watching the female hanyou intently. Inukigo rolled over to face them and then sat up, keeping her eyes hidden beneath her bangs.

"What do you mean, Inukigo-chan?" Kagome asked quietly.

Inukigo looked up, and there was a sad smile on her face that tore at both Kagome and Inuyasha's hearts.

"Before oyaji died, and I was still very little, Sesshoumaru was…my aniue. I idolized him, and worshipped the ground he walked on. Inuyasha once told me that I was like his shadow. He even taught me the basics of fighting. That's why I resemble him so much when I fight."

Inuyasha could see the deep pain in his sister's eyes, even though it was fairly dark, and worried that recalling these memories out loud would hurt her.

"Inukigo, are you sure you wa-"

"It's okay Inuyasha, I can say this," Inukigo said, cutting him off. Inuyasha was reluctant, but let her continue.

Inukigo took a deep breath and prepared herself to finish explaining.

"Then, when Inuyasha and I were about five years old, oyaji died; protecting us and ofukuro. After that, Sesshoumaru became bitter and cold, and decided to blame us for oyaji's death. It wasn't until a few years after ofukuro's death that he started coming around and picking fights. But he would always ignore me and go straight for Inuyasha. I could be standing right in front of him, and he wouldn't even acknowledge my presence. I had been closer to him, and he knew that ignoring me would be the way to hurt me the most."

Inukigo turned her head to the side, but Kagome didn't say anything. She had a feeling that Inukigo wasn't finished. Another sad smile, almost a grimace, came to Inukigo's face.

"Then one day, I called out to him. I shouted out 'aniue'. He was on me in seconds, and that was when he hit me. The force of it had me seeing stars, but I was strangely…happy. He had noticed me, and for a few moments I was happy. But then he said something that took those feelings away as quickly as they came. I'll never forget his words. 'Never again are you to refer to me in such a way. This Sesshoumaru has no sister'. Knowing that he had denied we were siblings was worse than what he was doing before. After that was when he started to go harder on me during the fights. And every time, he would rub in my face…that he had no sister."

Inuyasha and Kagome looked on sadly as Inukigo hung her head and dug her claws deeply into the ground beside her.

Kagome was near tears. She had never imagined that Sesshoumaru could have been so cruel. She couldn't imagine what it must have been like for Inukigo - to be disowned by your big brother, who you looked up to and idolized for so long.

Inukigo scented the tears and turned her head to look towards her brother and Kagome. She saw the look that Kagome was sending her and sighed. She should have known that this would be Kagome's reaction, the girl had such a big heart. Taking a deep breath to steady herself, Inukigo crawled the short distance to Kagome and Inuyasha and sat down in front of them.

"Inukigo-chan…I…"

Inukigo held up her hand to stop Kagome from speaking and shook her head.

"Please, Kagome…just don't. It's not worth it."

Kagome looked at Inukigo sadly.

"Isn't it painful, Inukigo-chan?"

Inukigo was silent for a few moments, as if she was thinking about something, then nodded her head slowly.

"It is," she confirmed, "But," she added with a smile, "It's okay. I have Inuyasha by my side, and now I have you and the others too. That helps a lot."

Inuyasha and Kagome returned the smile and Inuyasha reached over and tweaked one of his sister's ears. Inukigo laughed softly and tried to flick her ear away from his hand. Inuyasha caught her eyes, and saw something that he had fully expected to see, although he wasn't sure if Kagome noticed it.

'_I can tell, Inukigo, even after everything Sesshoumaru has done to you, you still miss him. You still wish that things were like they were when we little…I do too, I guess. He always has been aniue, I'm sorry that I can't fill that role._'

Inukigo let Inuyasha tweak her ear one last time before pulling her head away. She then looked at the pair, her eyes narrowing and a sly smile spreading slowly across her face. Inuyasha wasn't sure he liked that look.

"Well I suppose I should go back and get some sleep," she then leaned in with a suggestive look on her face, "I'll just leave the two of you alone, and let you _cuddle_," waggling her eyebrows at the word cuddle.

Kagome blushed lightly, but didn't say anything. Inuyasha, on the other hand, realized what she was implying and his face matched his haori perfectly. He knew that she was referring to what she had smelled the night before, and she also seemed to know that he had not told Kagome about what she had discovered.

"Ooi! I think that dirty monk is starting to rub off on you."

Inukigo laughed outright, and Kagome looked back and forth between the two, not really understanding what Inukigo was going on about or why Inuyasha was getting so defensive. Inukigo was still laughing lightly as she made her way back over to the dwindling camp fire and took up her previous position, lying on her side with Shippou curled up against her stomach. Shippou hadn't even noticed her leave, but snuggled closer to her warmth now that she had returned.

Inuyasha was still in a defensive mood, and Kagome could feel his tenseness from her place in his lap. She looked up at him curiously.

"Inuyasha, is something wrong?"

Inuyasha seemed startled by her voice.

"N-no, nothing," he stammered out quickly.

Kagome wasn't convinced and narrowed her eyes accusingly.

"Are you sure?"

Inuyasha nodded his head jerkily. No way was he telling her that Inukigo had smelled what they had been doing the night before. She'd probably die from embarrassment. Kagome wasn't very happy that he was keeping something from her, but told herself that if it was really important Inuyasha wouldn't be hiding it from her. Inuyasha relaxed when Kagome showed no signs of asking further questions.

They sat there quietly for a few moments before Inuyasha spoke up. He didn't really want to ask, but felt as though he should when he noticed that Kagome was nodding off.

"Ooi, Kagome," he said just loud enough to catch her attention. She looked up at him drowsily.

"Nani?" she asked rubbing her eyes.

"Do you want to sleep here, or pull out your bedroll?"

Kagome thought about it for a moment. She had heard the reluctance in his voice and knew that he wanted her to stay with him. However, she wasn't too happy about sleeping upright again.

"I want to stay here with you Inuyasha, I really do. It's just that, sleeping sitting up…" she trailed off, rubbing her neck and remembering the kink that had been that that morning.

Inuyasha's ears drooped.

"I guess you want your bedroll then?"

Kagome nodded.

"Yes, demo…"

When she trailed off Inuyasha looked down at her and was surprised to see her blushing.

"Hmm? What is it?"

Kagome toyed with her fingers and refused to look at him.

"Would…would you…stay with me?"

Inuyasha looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

Kagome didn't answer but her blush deepened as if she were embarrassed to tell him outright what she wanted. When he thought about what could have gotten her embarrassed, his eyes widened.

"You want me to stay in the bedroll with you?"

Kagome nodded and Inuyasha smiled, even though he felt his face redden a little.

"Sure, if that's what you want Kagome."

Kagome looked up at him through her bangs.

"Really?"

Inuyasha smiled and nodded, causing Kagome to smile back. She stood up and took his hand, leading him towards her backpack, where her sleeping bag lay, still rolled up. She went about setting it up while Inuyasha stood next to her and waited. When she had the sleeping bag ready she crawled inside, then motioned for him to join her. Inuyasha pulled off his fire-rat haori, laying on the ground next to the sleeping bag, and crawled in next to her. The sleeping bag wasn't meant for two people, so it took a bit of squirming around before they were both situated comfortably. When they finally settled down, Kagome's back was squished tightly against Inuyasha's chest, Inuyasha having wrapped both arms around her and crossing them over her stomach. He had also tossed one leg over both of hers, effectively pinning her against him. Kagome had to marvel at their position. She had thought that it would be uncomfortable to be squelched together so tightly, but she found herself feeling warm, content, and safer than she had ever felt in her life.

"Comfortable?" she heard Inuyasha ask from behind her.

"Hmm…yes, very," she replied, laying her hands over his.

"Good," he mumbled, burying his face in her hair, "Because I am, and I don't think I could have moved if you weren't."

Kagome giggled and reached back to scratch the ear that she could reach. Inuyasha sighed blissfully and buried his face deeper in her hair. He parted her hair with his nose and gave her a nipping kiss on the back of her neck. Kagome shivered and cuddled up against him. She then yawned, causing Inuyasha to chuckle against the skin of her neck.

"Oyasumi, Inuyasha. Aishiteru."

Inuyasha's heart warmed. He knew that from now on, there was no way that he'd be able to sleep without Kagome beside him. He kissed her neck again.

"Night, Kagome."

In moments both had drifted off into a peaceful, happy sleep.

* * *

Finally got chapter 9 up, sorry I took so long. Wish I could update more regularly, but school interferes with that. Thanks to those who reviewed and I decided to answer a few questions this time! (both of these came from - Well, there's actually a funny story behind the 'kigo' in Inukigo. When I first started writing 'Long Awaited Reunion' I wanted the character of Inuyasha's sister to have a name that meant 'dog demoness' to complement Inuyasha's name which means 'dog demon' or 'dog spirit'. So, I was looking around for a translation site and it said that 'kigo' meant 'demoness', and so we get Inukigo. Now, a few weeks ago, I happened to be on a different site, and curiously wanted to know what the kanji for her name would be. Imagine my surprise when 'kigo' didn't mean 'demoness' at all. As it turns out, 'kijo' is the proper word, 'kigo' means 'sending word by'. Seeing as how it's been about a year since I created her, the name Inukigo has stuck, so I didn't want to change it to Inukijo. So there you go, her name means 'sending word by dog'.

Inu-Shinta - I will be going into Inuyasha's past a bit more later on, as for the other stuff you asked about…no and no. Sorry, I don't do ecchi fan arts, tasteful hentai maybe, but not ecchi, and no way am I writing a threesome. I'm not one to judge peoples' preferences, but that is **_definitely _**not one of mine. I'm not even sure yet if I'm going to have Ayame show up in my fics. If I do she will be there to cause conflict, not to pair up with Kouga and Inukigo.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

It took a few days for the group to get back to Kaede's village, and everyone was happy to finally get a break.

After a visit to Kaede, Kagome announced that she was going home, and for once Inuyasha had no complaints. He walked her to the well, and with a quick kiss and 'see you later', Kagome was gone.

Inukigo noticed that Inuyasha wasn't all that depressed this time around, but later discovered the reason as to why. It was just getting dark when he announced to her that he would be spending the night with Kagome on the other side of the well. Inukigo took the opportunity to tease him lightly, reminding him not to partake in certain 'activities'. Inuyasha had blushed furiously and tried to form a come back, but Inukigo laughed and patted his head, saying 'see you tomorrow'. He huffed, muttered a 'ja ne', along with something about having an evil sister, and jumped down the well.

That had been the previous evening, and now it was nearing midday. Inukigo sat against the well, completely and utterly bored. Everyone seemed to have something to do except her. She had even found herself hoping that Kouga would come by and keep her company. She had blushed and shook her head to clear that thought. She wasn't that fond of the guy…right…?

Inukigo turned and rested her arms on the lip of the well, laying her head atop of them while she looked down into it's depths. The well still confused her. How could a well used for the disposal of youkai remains in this time serve as a portal to 500 years in the future?

She leaned up further, sniffing and scrunching up her nose. There was an odd smell emanating from the well. It wasn't something that she was familiar with, and it wasn't all that pleasant. Having nothing better to do, Inukigo decided to go down and investigate. She stood up and jumped down into the well. She expected to hit the dry bottom of the well, which was why her eyes shot open in panic when she found herself floating and engulfed by a magical blue light…

Inuyasha was sitting high in the Goshinboku, looking out over the city of Tokyo. He wasn't sure he'd ever get used to Kagome's world. There were just so many people, and everything was so big. Then there was the fact that there were no forests. The only thing left of his once vast forest was the small grove of trees that surrounded the shrine. Kagome had assured him that there were trees in other places as well, in parks and in more rural areas outside of the city, but it wasn't the same. He sat back against the trunk of the tree, trying not to be depressed by how much his world was going to change.

Just as he was getting comfortable, he felt a familiar tingling in his spine, one he had come to associate with the activation of the well. He turned his gaze on the well house in confusion. No one but he and Kagome could go through the well, and they were both already on this side. Had someone come through from the past?

Inuyasha quickly leapt down from the Goshinboku and bounded to the well house, throwing open the door. There was no one in sight, but then he heard a groan coming from the bottom of the well. Then a familiar smell made it's way to his nose.

"Inukigo?"

He got a groan in reply as he walked down the steps to the well. Before he got there, he saw Inukigo's hands grasp the lip of the well and then her head as she pulled herself up. That was as far as she got. She then braced her arms on the well and rested her head on them. Inuyasha just stared at her.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Inukigo didn't look up at him, so he crouched down on his haunches so he was eye level with her.

"I don't know," she replied groggily, "Where's here?"

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow at her.

"Kagome's world. You know that's where the well leads," he then took a good look at her face, "Hey, are you alright? You don't look so good."

Inukigo didn't answer, instead raising one arm and doing her best to cover her nose and mouth.

"Kami, Inuyasha what's that awful stench?" her face suddenly turned pale and she clenched her eyes shut, "I think I'm gonna be sick…"

Inuyasha's eyes widened at her announcement. He quickly stood and grabbed her under the arms so he could pick her up. In his panic, he never thought to bring her back down through the well. Being careful not to jostle her too much, he sprinted off towards the house as quickly as he could. He had a feeling he knew what was making her ill.

Reaching the house, he pulled open the shoji, then shut it behind him as he darted in. He quickly ran through the house before stopping at the doorway of the kitchen, where he startled Mama Higurashi, who was just getting ready to start making dinner.

"Inuyasha!" she exclaimed, a hand on her chest. She then took notice of the young hanyou girl that the boy was carrying, "Who is this?"

Inuyasha shook his head.

"No time. She says she's gonna be sick."

Mama's eyes widened.

"Quickly, dear. Bring her to the bathroom upstairs. I'll be up in a moment."

Inuyasha nodded then turned around and took off towards the stairs. He was up them in one leap and then dashed down the hall towards the bathroom. Once inside he spotted his destination and quickly carried Inukigo over to the toilet, kneeling her down in front of it. She just sat there for a few seconds, one hand covering her mouth while the other wrapped around her stomach. Her eyes clenched tight and Inuyasha noticed her urge. He quickly placed a hand on her back, directing her towards the toilet where she proceeded to empty the contents of her stomach. Inuyasha grimaced, rubbing her back comfortingly. When she finished retching she sat back and leaned heavily against Inuyasha, panting in an attempt to catch her breath. Inuyasha knew that this was going to do more harm than good.

He was surprised when a wet washcloth was held out in front of his face. He looked up at Mama as he took the cloth from her, he hadn't even heard her enter the bathroom. He nodded his thanks, then turned and wiped over Inukigo's face with the cool cloth. She grunted then cracked her eyes open when he passed the cloth over her forehead. She really didn't look very good. He then turned towards Mama.

"Where in the house has the best air?"

She looked at him, confused by his choice of words.

"Best air?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"Yeah. Where there are the fewest scents from outside."

"Oh," she said, understanding what he meant, "There's an air filter in the living room. It would probably be best there," she explained, taking the cloth from him, "You go ahead and take her there. I'll get a few things ready and be down in a few minutes."

"Okay," he replied, picking Inukigo up again when he discovered that she was completely incapacitated.

He made his way back downstairs at a more normal pace, where he walked to the living room and sat down on the floor with Inukigo still in his arms. Her eyes were partly opened, but he wasn't sure if she was comprehending anything that she was seeing. If she had been only 'kind of' out of it before, she was totally out of it now.

'_Is the air here really that bad?_' he wondered, for once being thankful that he didn't have her nose. He usually envied her extremely sensitive sense of smell, she could pick up the tiniest traces of a person's scent, but now was not one of those times. The air in Kagome's time did bother him a bit, he could only imagine what it must be like for Inukigo. It was obviously enough to make her sick.

He was brought out of him musings by the sound of footsteps, and turned to see Mama entering the living room, carrying a spare futon. She set it up on the floor and Inuyasha set Inukigo on it, stretching her out on her stomach. She seemed to be looking slightly better, but she was no where near aware of her surroundings. Mama left the room again, then returned with a basin and cloth, setting it down near Inukigo's head. She sat down herself, looking at Inukigo worriedly. Inuyasha then recalled that he had just blown by her without explaining who Inukigo was.

"Gomen, Higurashi-san. This is my sister, Inukigo. I'm sure that she would introduce herself…but she doesn't seem to be fully conscious."

Mama smiled at him softly.

"It's perfectly alright, Inuyasha. I had assumed this was the sister that you and Kagome mentioned. She looks very much like you. I am confused though. I thought that only you and Kagome could go through the well."

Inuyasha's brows furrowed in thought.

"So did I. I don't know how she managed to get through. I'll have to ask her when she comes around."

Mama nodded. Inukigo groaned, drawing the attention of both her caretakers.

"What made her so ill?" Mama wondered out loud.

"The air overloaded her senses," Inuyasha explained.

"The air?" Mama questioned.

Inuyasha nodded.

"Aa. It's all the pole-lution, or whatever in the air. It smells pretty bad, and she has a really sensitive nose."

"I see," Mama said, laying a hand on Inukigo's forehead, "Poor dear."

Inukigo's eyes clearly slightly and opened a little wider at the feeling of a hand on her forehead. She glanced up to see the kind face of the woman smiling down at her warmly.

'_Who?_' she didn't realized that she said the question out loud as well as think it.

Mama kept smiling.

"I'm Kagome's mother. I've heard about you, Inukigo."

Inukigo blinked up at her curiously before closing her eyes and snuggling her face against the futon below her and drifting off to sleep.

"Will she be alright?" Mama asked, turning to Inuyasha.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied, "She'll probably be out of commission for the rest of the day though."

Mama nodded her understanding, then stood up.

"You stay here and keep an eye on her. I'll go finish making dinner. I'll call you when it's ready."

"Alright," Inuyasha agreed.

Mama left the room, and a few minutes later Inuyasha could hear her in the kitchen. He wasn't sure how long he sat there watching Inukigo until he heard her groan and saw her start to open her eyes. She still didn't seem to be very comfortable and he rubbed her back to help sooth her. Inukigo sighed and shifted around so she was lying on her back. Inuyasha looked into her eyes and saw that she was at least aware now.

"Hey, feeling better?"

Inukigo draped an arm over her eyes.

"Yeah, somewhat," she managed to answer, "Kami, when was the last time I was sick?"

Inuyasha thought about it for a moment.

"It was before Ofukuro died. I think you ate something bad."

Inukigo nodded then groaned again.

"My head hurts."

Inuyasha reached for the basin, then put the cloth in the cool water and wrung it out.

"Here," he said, moving her arm away and placing the cloth on her forehead, "Better?"

Inukigo grunted affirmatively. Inuyasha waited a few moments before speaking again.

"Inukigo, how did you get here?"

Inukigo shrugged and kept her eyes closed as she answered.

"I don't know. There was this weird smell coming up from the well, and I was bored, so I decided to see what it was. I didn't think it was going to let me through. And then I got on this side and picked up that awful smell…what was that?" she asked, opening her eyes to look up at him.

"It was the air here," Inuyasha replied.

"The air?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"Yeah. There's stuff in this world that puts a lot of bad scents into the air."

"I see."

"I wonder how you managed to get through the well," Inuyasha thought out loud.

Inukigo gave no comment and remained silent.

A few moments later a call came from the kitchen.

"Inuyasha, dinner is ready if you want any. There's plenty for your sister too, if she's hungry."

"Want anything?" Inuyasha asked as he stood up.

Inukigo removed the now warm washcloth from her forehead, then rolled over to lay on her stomach again

"No, tell her I said thank you though."

Inuyasha grunted and bent over to pat her on the shoulder, then turned and walked out of the room towards the kitchen. Mama was placing dishes on the table and turned to look at him entering the room.

"Will Inukigo be joining us, Inuyasha?"

Inuyasha shook his head.

"No. She's not feeling up to it. She said thanks though."

Mama nodded and continued what she had been doing while she spoke.

"Does she still feel very ill?"

"No," Inuyasha replied, thinking of how to explain, "Her head's pretty messed up though. That's what tends to happen when our sense of smell gets overloaded."

"Has that ever happened to you before, Inuyasha?" she asked, setting down the last bowl on the table.

Inuyasha took his seat before replying.

"Yeah, but never that bad before. Never enough to make me sick to my stomach like that."

"I see," Mama said, "I suppose then it's a true testament to how badly we have polluted our world in this era."

Inuyasha didn't answer and began eating. After a few mouthfuls, he noticed that someone was missing.

"Ooi, where's the jiji?"

"I called him already, he should be down in a moment," she paused in her meal, and looked as though she was in deep thought.

"What is it?" Inuyasha asked.

"Well, I was just thinking…ji-chan would have to walk by the living room to come in here. I don't suppose he would pay any mind to-"

"GAH! DEMON!"

Both Inuyasha's and Mama's eyes whipped to the door, then each other, and both of them got up and darted off towards the living room. When they reached the scene of the commotion, there was grandpa, circling Inukigo and crying 'demon be gone' while throwing ofudas at her. Inukigo didn't look amused. She sat on the futon with her hands over her ears, probably to block the cries of the old man from penetrating her throbbing head, with a very pissed off yet groggy look on her face.

Inuyasha was about to step forward and put a stop to it, when an ofuda managed to plant itself dead centre on Inukigo's face. She closed her eyes and a deep, threatening growl began emanating from her chest. Before Inuyasha could stop her, Inukigo exploded.

"What in the HELL do you think you're doing old man!" she bellowed, causing ji-chan to freeze in his tracks. He slowly prepared to throw the ofuda that he was holding at her, but she would have none of it. She whipped the useless piece of paper from her face and rose up on her knees to stare him down. She teetered a little at first because her balance was off, but quickly righted herself.

"Don't you dare throw that at me, you old geezer! I suggest you put away those useless pieces of paper right now and leave me the fuck alone. I am not in a tolerating mood," she snarled.

Before ji-chan could decide whether to heed her warning, Mama had stepped in between the two with her hands on her hips facing him.

"That is quite enough, ji-chan," she said in a no nonsense tone.

"But, I was just exorcising the demon-"

"This young girl is Inuyasha's sister and our guest, you will be doing nothing of the sort. Now, go to the kitchen before your dinner gets cold."

"But-"

"Now. I will not have you bothering this poor girl while she isn't well."

Ji-chan didn't look too happy, but complied anyway, slipping the remaining ofudas into his kimono and stalking out of the room, mumbling about demons invading his shrine. Mama sighed and turned to see Inuyasha kneeling beside his sister trying to calm her down while picking the numerous ofudas out of her hair.

"I'm sorry, Inukigo," she said, kneeling down in front of the siblings, "I should have realized sooner what his reaction would be if he saw you."

Inukigo looked at the woman and smiled, despite her apparent dizziness.

"It's alright, Higurashi-san. I'm sorry I lost my temper," she apologized, remembering Inuyasha's reprimand about cursing in front of Kagome's mother and grandfather.

"Think nothing of it dear. I know ji-chan can be a little…excitable. And you're not feeling well, so I'd imagine that you wouldn't want to deal with him."

Inukigo lowered her head slightly and blushed.

"Arigatou, Higurashi-san."

Mama smiled and stood up.

"Are you sure you won't join us for dinner?"

"I'm sure," Inukigo replied, "Thank you, but I think I'll stay in here for a while longer, until my senses adjust."

"Alright then. I'll save some for you to have later."

Inukigo nodded and Mama left the room. Inuyasha waited until Mama was out of hearing range until speaking.

"If your head wasn't messed up already, I'd throttle you."

Inukigo glared at him indignantly.

"What for?"

"For not holding your temper around Kagome's family."

Inukigo sent him a sly looking grin.

"Oh, I get it. You're afraid that I'll embarrass you in front of your intended mate's fam-ymph-"

Inukigo was cut off by Inuyasha's hand clamping down over her mouth.

"Shh! Don't say that too loud," he hissed in a whisper.

Inukigo glared at him, and Inuyasha took it as a sign to remove his hand.

"What's your problem? Why can't I say it?" she looked at him curiously. Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably and kept his eyes off her. Realization dawned on Inukigo.

"You didn't tell them, did you?"

Inuyasha flinched, telling Inukigo she had hit the nail right on the head.

"Why didn't the two of you tell them?" Inukigo asked incredulously.

"Kagome wanted to wait until tonight to tell them. She said she wanted to have a peaceful night at home before we told them, because her family would start pestering us or something."

"I see," Inukigo said. Watching Inuyasha, she could see that he was still uncomfortable about something.

"There's something else isn't there?"

Inuyasha looked at his sister out of the corner of his eyes. She was way to used to his moods.

"I haven't asked her mother's permission yet," he replied quietly.

Inukigo gaped at him, wide-eyed.

"Are you serious?"

Inuyasha nodded sombrely.

"Why did you ask Kagome when you hadn't asked permission from her parents?"

"It's not like I planned to ask her before I asked permission. It just ended up happening that way."

"Well, why don't you ask her now?" Inukigo suggested.

Inuyasha shifted around uneasily.

"Inuyasha. You have to ask before you announce it. You know that. It wouldn't be honourable otherwise."

"I know! It's just that…" Inuyasha trailed off, as though he didn't really want to voice his thoughts.

"It's just what?"

"What if…she refuses it."

"What?" Inukigo asked, not believing that she was hearing this again.

"What if Kagome's mother doesn't consent to it. She can forbid the marking if she chooses to."

"Why are you thinking this? She seems to like you well enough. What reason would she have for forbidding it?" she asked, though she had a pretty good idea.

Inuyasha's face set into a painful scowl.

"Sure, she might seem to like me well enough, but that could easily change if I ask her for Kagome. After all, I am only a-"

"Stop," Inukigo ordered, causing Inuyasha's face to whip towards her, "I don't want to hear it. You doubt yourself too much, Inuyasha."

"But-"

"But nothing. I'm sure Higurashi-san will have no problems with you wanting to take Kagome for your mate. I'm sure that she already knows that the two of you are close."

Inuyasha looked at her with surprise. Inukigo had to laugh.

"What? Did you think that you were hiding it well? I knew within the first few days of being with all of you that there was something going on between you and Kagome. It would be impossible for her mother to not know over the two years that you have been travelling together."

Inuyasha bowed his head and stared at the floor. Would Kagome's mother really be that accepting of him?

"Inuyasha?"

Both Inukigo and Inuyasha turned to see the very woman they had been discussing standing in the doorway.

"Do you still want your dinner? It's getting cold."

Inukigo took the opportunity and whacked her brother on the back catching his attention.

"Go for it," she whispered, soft enough that Inuyasha would be the only one who heard.

Inuyasha looked at her, and Inukigo gave him a reassuring smile. He took a deep breath and steeled his features, and rolled to his feet with a grace that Inukigo hadn't known he possessed. He strode confidently over to Mama, who was still standing in the doorway, confused as ever. Inukigo could smell the nervousness and apprehension pouring off of him, even with her messed up nose.

He stood directly in front of Mama, and looked her straight in the eye. Mama looked back at him, unsure of what was occurring.

"Higurashi-sama."

Mama eyes widened at the respectful title that Inuyasha had used, but she had no time to question it, because the boy dropped to his knees before her. He lowered his head and bowed towards her, his hands fisting on the tatami directly in front of his knees. She was about to ask him what he was doing, but Inuyasha began to speak.

"Higurashi-sama. I, Inuyasha, son of the Inu no Taisho who once ruled over the western territories, request from you your daughter, Higurashi Kagome, that I may take her as my mate. I swear on my honour, that I shall always respect and honour her. I will forever be by her side, and I will protect her with my very life."

Mama just stared at the top of Inuyasha's head, wide-eyed and dumbfounded. She could see that both of his ears were focused completely on her, waiting for her answer.

"Inuyasha…I'm not sure, if I understand what it is you are asking of me. Mate?"

Inukigo watched the entire exchange, proud that her brother had managed his short speech in such a steady voice, though she know exactly how terrified, yes terrified, he was at the moment. She looked at Mama after Inuyasha was finished speaking, and when the woman spoke, Inukigo nearly smacked herself in the head for not remembering that she had no knowledge of demon customs. Looking at her brother's rigid back, Inukigo guessed that Inuyasha probably wouldn't be capable of speech until Mama gave him an answer, so took it upon herself to explain to Kagome's mother.

"He means wife, in human terms."

Mama looked over to Inukigo, who was smiling happily, then back down to the hanyou boy kneeling at her feet. She was beginning to understand.

"Inuyasha, look at me please."

Inuyasha remained perfectly still, his nervousness seemingly having frozen him to the spot. When Mama repeated his name, Inuyasha gulped and slowly lifted his head to look up into the face of the woman before him. Her face was neutral, but her eyes were still warm and inviting.

"Inuyasha, do you love my daughter?"

Inuyasha's eyes widened a fraction and he nodded his head slightly, never breaking eye contact.

"Hai, Higurashi-sama. With all my heart."

A warm smile broke out on Mama's face, and Inuyasha relaxed slightly.

"Yes, Inuyasha. You may take my daughter as your mate."

The breath that Inuyasha had been holding rushed from his lungs in one long exhale in his relief. He bowed his head again, breaking their eye contact.

"Arigatou, Higurashi-sama."

Mama smiled and knelt down in front of him. She placed a hand under his chin and forced him too look up at her.

"Did you fear that I would say no?"

Inuyasha blushed and looked slightly off to the side. Inukigo commended the woman on her perceptiveness. She seemed to have seen through Inuyasha's calm exterior to the apprehension beneath right away.

"Inuyasha, I have known for a long time about the feelings between you and Kagome. I would never do anything to separate the two of you."

Inuyasha looked back to her face and nodding in understanding. Mama kept smiling and stood up once again.

"Come back and finish your dinner before it gets cold."

"In a minute," Inuyasha agreed.

Mama was satisfied and after patting his head once she turned and walked back towards the kitchen.

Inuyasha sat there for a moment, letting what just happened sink in.

"Told you."

He whipped around to face his sister, who was smiling and barely containing laughter. He growled playfully and pounced on her before she knew what was happening. Inukigo laughed and snickered openly as Inuyasha knocked her over and wrapped his arms around her. When her laughter died down, she gave him a quick nuzzle on the cheek and patted him on the back.

"Alright, go on and eat your dinner."

He rose up a bit and nodded, then returned the nuzzle before releasing her and jumping to his feet. As he was heading out into the hallway, Inukigo's voice stopped him.

"And keep that crazy old man away from me!"

Inuyasha laughed as he walked down the hall towards the kitchen and his future family.

* * *

'_Why is it that I can't seem to stop thinking about her?_'

Far from the bone-eater's well and from Musashi, there was a rather large cave hidden behind a waterfall which housed a small pack of wolf demons. The leader of this pack was currently at the far back of the cave, reclining against the wall as his mind strayed once again to the hanyou woman he had met days before.

'_Inukigo._'

Kouga didn't know what to make of the feelings that stirred up within him at the thought of the woman. They were similar to what he felt for Kagome, but at the same time very different. He wasn't sure how to describe the difference, but one thing that he did know was that these feelings were definitely stronger than anything he had ever felt before.

This was what confused him the most, and honestly had him a little scared. He had only been in the woman's company for an hour at most, and now he couldn't stop thinking about her. Whenever he thought of her, he then would pick up her scent, as though it were stuck to him or forever imprinted into his mind. Then he would be able to picture her. Usually, it was what she looked like running beside him, her hair whipping around in the generated wind. A few times though the image of her standing in the river, or of her naked in his arms had come to his mind, and he had shaken his head to clear the thoughts.

He knew what it meant. He had stopped denying it after the first day. He was attracted to her. But that wasn't all. His instincts were telling him that it wasn't that simple, that there was something much deeper to his feelings.

'_To think, I'm interested enough in her to court her._'

Had it been someone else in his position he would have laughed at the absurdness of it all. A full blooded wolf demon, attracted to a dog hanyou. However absurd it was though, he had to acknowledge it. His instincts were telling him to pursue this woman, and he was never one to go against his instincts.

"Kouga?"

Kouga looked up from his thoughts to see Hakkaku watching him closely.

"What is it?"

"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?"

Kouga didn't deny anything and averted his gaze indifferently. Both Ginta and Hakkaku had figured out pretty quickly who had been occupying his mind whenever he seemed to space out. He assumed it had something to do with the fact that Inukigo's scent had been all over him when he got back to the cave that night. They hadn't really commented on it, and he wasn't in the mood to discuss it with them.

Mind made up, Kouga stood and began walking towards the cave entrance.

"I'm going," he called out behind him, "Alone this time."

"You're going to see her, right?"

Kouga looked to his left to see Ginta leaning against the wall near the cave entrance. He didn't answer and Ginta took that as confirmation.

"The Elders won't allow it, you know that right?"

Kouga knew what he was referring to. The Elders, who had authority over all of the packs and tribes within the clan, would not approve of him taking interest in a half demon.

Kouga turned his gaze towards the waterfall at the entrance of the cave.

"That's for me to worry about. Don't concern yourself over it."

Before Ginta could comment any further, Kouga sprinted off through the waterfall, and began running towards his destination - Musashi, and the forest of Inuyasha.

'_I have to see her. I need to know that these feelings are what I think they are._'

* * *

"So what did he give you this time nee-chan?"

Kagome looked around the large basket in her arms so she could see her little brother walking just ahead and off to the side of her.

"Umm…there's fruit, and I think I saw some salts for baths and foot soaks in there. I'm not sure what else, I didn't want to dig through it at school."

"You think he would have given up by now. Watch the step nee-chan," Souta warned as he and Kagome came to the shrine steps.

"Thanks. Yeah, you would think. Yuka and Eri keep encouraging him though. And lately he always runs off before I can refuse his gifts. I'm starting to think that he knows that I'm going to turn him down but doesn't want to hear it."

The siblings walked quietly up the rest of the stairs and across the shrine courtyard. Souta slid open the shoji so Kagome could walk in, and after taking off their shoes the two of them walked through the hall looking for the rest of the home's occupants. When they came to the living room, Souta squeaked and Kagome nearly dropped the basket she was carrying on his head at the sight that greeted them.

Mama was sitting at the table in the living room drinking tea, and there with her were none other than Inuyasha AND Inukigo. All three of the room's occupants had turned towards herself and Souta at his squeak.

Souta raised a shaky hand and pointed at the silver haired, dog eared girl sitting with a clay cup lifted to her mouth.

"T-there's two Inuyashas!"

Inukigo's ears flicked in agitation, and Inuyasha started laughing. His laughter was cut short however when Inukigo reached over and cuffed him upside the head.

"Hey!"

Inukigo ignored him and went back to drinking her tea.

"Inukigo-chan? I-How did you get here?"

Inukigo shrugged and put down her empty cup.

"I don't know. I jumped down in the well out of curiosity and it let me through."

"This is the sister that you and Inu-oniichan told us about?" Souta asked.

Inukigo snickered, earning a slightly embarrassed glare from her brother.

"Yeah, this is her," Kagome replied, then remembered the basket that she carried in her arms, "I'll be right back, I just have to bring this up to my room."

"I'll come with you," Inuyasha said as he stood up and followed her into the hallway.

He took the basket from her arms and walked with her towards her room.

"What is all this stuff?" he asked, sniffing at it through the cello wrap.

"Another gift from Hojo," Kagome sighed. She had decided to expand Inukigo's advice and had dropped the -kun from his name as well.

"Another one?" Inuyasha asked, knowing all too well about the human boy's habit of bringing gifts for Kagome, "I thought that you weren't gonna accept them any more?"

"I've tried," Kagome explained, "But he keeps running away before I can refuse. I might actually be able to use all the stuff in this one though, instead of having to give it to ji-chan."

Inuyasha didn't answer her as he walked through the door that she had opened for him. Kagome could tell that something was bothering him and she had a pretty good idea of what it was. Once he had placed the basket down on her bed she walked up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist as she rested her head against his shoulder.

"The gifts don't mean anything to me Inuyasha. Don't worry about it."

"But-" Inuyasha started to say, but Kagome cut him off.

"I mean it. I don't need gifts from you Inuyasha. Just having you with me is plenty."

Inuyasha turned around in her arms and wrapped his around her shoulders. She smiled up at him, and he couldn't help but lean down slightly to kiss her. She responded to him immediately, and there was no resistance from her when he licked her lips asking for entrance. He still wasn't all that sure of what he was doing, but he had learned a lot about kissing in the last few days by picking up on the ways that Kagome kissed him. He felt her shiver when his tongue swept through her mouth so he guessed that he was doing it right. When they broke apart for air they were both panting lightly and still holding each other closely.

When she got her breath back Kagome smiled up at him.

"That's way better than any of Hojo's gifts."

Inuyasha smiled back at her, then leaned in again and nipped at her neck just below her jaw, a spot that he had discovered could be very ticklish. He received the desired effect when Kagome started giggling and batting at him with her hands. After a few moments of that he stopped and rested his cheek against hers so that his mouth was beside her ear.

"Thank you."

He felt Kagome smile and she rubbed her cheek against his. She pulled back to look into his eyes.

"You're welcome."

She gave him a peck on the lips, which Inuyasha tried to deepen, but Kagome wouldn't let him and stepped out of his arms towards the closet. He whined softly when she walked away from him, and Kagome had to smile. He'd started making that noise whenever he wanted to keep doing whatever they had been doing. It usually worked, because he suckered her back into it, but not this time.

"Not right now, Inuyasha. Someone will probably come see what's taking us so long, so we'll end up being interrupted anyways."

She saw his ears droop and knew that he was trying to pull her back, but she managed to resist him.

"Later okay. Now, I'm going to change, so out."

"Fine, fine. I'm going," Inuyasha replied sulkily.

He went out the door, closing it behind him, and stood in the hall waiting for her. He had been sure he had her that time too.

'_Oh well,_' he thought with a grin, '_She did say later._'

"Inuyasha?"

His ear flicked as he heard Kagome through the door.

"Yeah?"

"How did Inukigo get here?"

"Like she said, the well just let her through. I don't know why," he then grimaced, remembering the rest of the events of that day, "I felt magic from the well, and when I went to look, I picked up her scent from the well, and saw her crawling out."

"Crawling?" Kagome questioned.

"Yeah, she wasn't in the greatest condition once she came through."

"What do you mean? Was she hurt?" Kagome asked as she opened the door and joined him in the hallway. Inuyasha took in her light blue sundress before shaking his head.

"No, she got sick when she came through."

"She was sick?" Kagome repeated, an incredulous look on her face, "Really?"

"Yeah, threw up and everything. She was kind of woozy for most of the day, it's only been within the last hour or so that she's been able to get up and walk around without looking like a drunk. She only left your living room once to come up here and use the bathroom," he explained as they walked towards the stairs.

"What happened?"

"The air in this era really stinks, you know that."

"Ah, so that's what it was," Kagome said, remembering the times that Inuyasha had been faintly ill from some strong scent, "How come the air here never makes you sick?"

Inuyasha snorted for a moment before grumbling.

"Her nose is better than mine."

"Oh," Kagome said, unsuccessfully stifling a small giggle at his grumpy expression, which earned her a glare from Inuyasha, "Well, it doesn't seem like her nose is much better in this situation."

"Keh," Inuyasha snorted, knowing full well that she was trying to appeal to his pride.

They walked the rest of the way back to the living room, where they found that Inukigo and Mama had been joined by the overeager Souta, who seemed to have taken it upon himself to tell Inukigo all about their era. She was taking it well, and humouring the boy, but Kagome had a pretty good idea that Inukigo had no idea what he was talking about. When Souta referred to her as Inu-oneechan, she heard Inuyasha snort to cover up a laugh, drawing Inukigo's attention and causing her to send him a look that clearly said 'say one word and you will pay'. Kagome felt it was time to save the poor hanyou girl.

"Inukigo-chan, Inuyasha mentioned that you were sick earlier. Are you feeling alright now?"

Inukigo looked at her, clearly grateful for the interruption.

"Mostly. Just a little dizzy and off-balanced when I move too quickly. I should be completely fine by nightfall, but I don't know if that would apply if I tried to go outside."

"I see," Kagome replied.

Kagome and Inuyasha knelt down next to the living room table as well, and together the group attempted to explain some of the workings of the modern era to a very overwhelmed Inukigo.

* * *

A few hours later, all were sitting at the kitchen table enjoying supper. Even ji-chan, although he was eyeing Inukigo warily, who would growl lowly whenever the man would move to reach into his haori, which would earn an elbow pock in the ribs, which resulted in many fights broken up by Kagome until she realized that her grandfather was the main cause and ordered him to give her all the ofudas that he was hiding. He gave them up after little fuss.

Inukigo seemed to share Inuyasha's distaste for spicy food, staying very far away from the spicier sauce that Mama had prepared for their steaks and opting for the much milder one that had been made in anticipation of the hanyous' sensitive tongues. When everyone had finished and Mama was clearing the table, Kagome looked to Inuyasha to ask if he was ready. He nodded and she took a deep breath as she grasped his hand beneath the table. She felt him squeeze her hand back and gave him a little smile.

"Minna," she called, before Souta or her grandfather could leave the room, "Could you all sit back down please. There's something that Inuyasha and I wanted to tell everyone."

Souta and ji-chan sat back down with looks of confusion on their faces, Mama looked like she might know what was going on, and Inukigo just sat there watching everyone else since she already knew exactly what this was about.

"Well Kagome, what is this about?" Mama asked, taking a seat across from her daughter.

Kagome took another steadying breath and squeezed Inuyasha's hand for support. She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and was surprised to see that he wasn't the least bit nervous. She could tell because his ears were perfectly relaxed, not straining forward on her family or twitching around like they normally did when he was on edge. Did he know something that she didn't?

"Well, we just wanted to say, that Inuyasha and I…we've decided to become…mates."

Souta and ji-chan looked at her like she had grown another head, but Mama was strangely calm.

'_Okay, something is definitely going on._'

"I was expecting as much. I'm very happy for you dear."

"Huh?" Kagome said unintelligently, "You were expecting it? B-but, how? I don't get it, you don't know anything about demon mating."

"Oh, Inuyasha mentioned something about it earlier today. When you said that there was something you wanted to announce I guessed that this was what it would be. Although there are some things that I would like to have explained."

Kagome hadn't paid much attention to her mother after she said that Inuyasha had mentioned it. She immediately turned to the hanyou beside her and levelled him with a glare.

"You mentioned it to her? I thought we were going to wait until now."

Inuyasha tried to come up with a way to save himself. Why did he get the feeling that that promise of 'later' was about to be taken away?

"I didn't tell her that we had already marked. I just mentioned some things about it to her, that's all."

"If I had known she wouldn't be surprised I wouldn't have been so nervous over this. Why didn't you tell me that you had talked to her about it?"

Inuyasha immediately grew defensive.

"What I discussed with your mother is not really something that I am meant to discuss with you afterwards."

Kagome seemed to forget that her family was sitting right across the table as their audience.

"Why not? I'm your intended aren't I? I think that I had a right to know about this!"

Without another word to her, Inuyasha rose from the table and walked out of the room. The occupants of the kitchen listened as his footsteps went up the stairs and then as a door slammed, most likely Kagome's. Kagome just sat there staring at the doorway.

'_What did I do?_'

"Kagome."

Inukigo's voice drew Kagome's attention to the female hanyou seated just down the table from her, who at the moment didn't seem very happy.

"That escalated much further than it needed to. You should have just accepted the fact that he didn't tell you and left it at that."

Kagome flinched at Inukigo's cold tone.

"But-"

"He was not in the wrong Kagome. What he talked about with your mother…he was asking her for permission to mark you."

Kagome's eyes widened.

"But we had already-"

"I know. But he was supposed to ask first. He's honour bound to do it. But he didn't need to talk about it with you. It's just something that isn't done."

Kagome looked down at her lap sadly.

"What do I do?"

"Apologize to him of course," Inukigo said as she got up from her chair.

She reached over and grabbed Kagome's hand, pulling the surprised girl up and out with her to the hall.

"Listen Kagome. I think that maybe this time when you apologize you should try appealing to his demon side a little bit."

"His demon?"

Inukigo nodded.

"Yes. You know that Inuyasha, as well as myself, are half demon. That half dictates a lot of what we do, and it also causes us to respond differently than humans to most situations."

"I understand," Kagome replied, nodding her head.

"Good. Now, like I said, you should try appealing to his demon side. You already know one way to do that, now I'm going to show you another way," Inukigo explained.

Looking Kagome in the eye, she lifted her chin, baring the expanse of her throat to the slightly confused girl.

"This is what would accompany an apology. It is a show of submission. In other situations it is also a show of absolute trust. You are willing baring your most vulnerable area, showing that you completely trust the person to not do you harm. When you do this, don't keep eye contact, and he may grab your neck to show that he's accepted your submission so try your best not to flinch. If you show any signs of fearing him he may take it as you not being sincere. Do you understand?" Inukigo asked, lowering her head.

"Hai," Kagome answered.

Inukigo gave her a smile.

"Then get going. Best to put an end to his mood before it gets too bad."

Kagome nodded and ran off towards the stairs. Inukigo turned to go back into the kitchen, where Kagome's family was still waiting anxiously. She sighed and sat back down with them.

"Since those too are busy, I think I should explain the workings of demon courting…"

Kagome ran up the stairs, but slowed down and came to a stop outside her door. She took a deep breath as she prepared herself to open the door.

'_I can do this. He must have wanted to talk to me, right? That's why he came up here instead of running off outside somewhere. Yes, I'm sure of it._'

With that thought in mind, Kagome slowly pushed open the door and peered into the darkened room. There was Inuyasha, sitting on her windowsill with one leg hanging inside the room. He never turned to look at her, but she could see his ears turn her way to follow her movements. She slowly walked across the room to stand beside him and laid a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to get him to look at her. It didn't work, and after a few moments, Kagome sighed and took his face in one hand, turning him to look at her.

"Inuyasha," she said, averting her eyes, "I'm sorry, for what I said in the kitchen."

Ever so slowly she lifted her chin, baring her neck to him. She heard a sharp intake of breath, as though he was surprised by her actions. She stayed perfectly still, waiting for Inuyasha to show some sign of accepting her apology. He surprised her when she felt him lean forward and clamp his mouth around her throat, but she remembered what Inukigo had told her and didn't move. After a few moments he let go and stood up so he could look down at her upturned face. Before Kagome could ask him what he was doing his mouth latched onto hers possessively. She responded without a second thought and opened her mouth when he asked. She felt one of his hands tangle through her hair and grip her head at the nape, while the other rested on her left shoulder, his thumb lightly stroking over the mark he had made on her neck.

Kagome shivered and drew closer to him, then placed both hands on his neck and slid them underneath his haori and under kimono. She ran her hands along his shoulders, loosening his shirts in the process, before returning her hands to his neck. Inuyasha leaned further into her when her fingers danced across her mark. Kagome wasn't sure how long they stood there, but it seemed as though a lifetime had passed when she felt Inuyasha's hands leave her head and neck, and then glide down her back and sides to rest on her hips. She sensed some hesitance from him, and while she wondered why, Inuyasha made up his mind and his hands slide down over the outside of her thighs until they stopped just below her butt. She didn't have the chance to wonder what he was doing, because Inuyasha grabbed the backs of her thighs and then lifted her up and towards him. Kagome's eyes shot open as her legs went around his waist, surprised that they were no longer firmly planted on the floor.

Inuyasha never noticed her surprise. He still had his eyes closed kissing her, and her hands were still on his neck. He was losing himself again, just like the time when they had first marked each other, he knew it. He knew exactly where everything in Kagome's room was, so without opening his eyes or stopping what he was doing he made his way over to Kagome's bed, where he sat down with Kagome straddling his lap.

Inuyasha released her mouth for a moment and looked up into her eyes before latching his mouth on his mark. Kagome nearly squealed when he started attacking her neck, and started kissing at his neck in between small moans and whimpers while her left hand moved up to begin rhythmically rub one of his ears. Inuyasha growled low and wrapped his arms around her to pull her tightly against him. He hadn't known that rubbing his ears could feel like that. When Kagome touched him it felt as though shocks ran through his whole body, and he was sure that if he hadn't been sitting down his legs would have given out.

Inuyasha started alternating between licking, sucking, nipping, and kissing the mark on Kagome's neck, and was revelling in all the sounds she was making. It wasn't long before he felt Kagome rocking against him like she had the first time. He knew that it was instinctual for her body to move in that way, and he then realized that he didn't want it to be for that reason. With one last kiss to the mark he took his mouth away and moved to kiss closer to her ear. As he anticipated, Kagome stopped rocking, but what he was totally unprepared for was all her weight bearing down on his shoulders and pushing his back to the bed.

"K-Kagome."

The girl above him looked down with hazy eyes.

"Why did you stop?"

Inuyasha nearly laughed. Kagome was pouting at him. He kept his laughter at bay and steeled himself to explain to her.

"Kagome, did you realize what your body was doing just now?"

Kagome looked down at him in confusion.

"What was I doing?"

Instead of telling her, Inuyasha thrust his hips up lightly, effectively rubbing his groin against the apex of her thighs. He bit back the groan that wanted to escape from the friction, while Kagome's eyes widened and her mouth formed a surprised 'o'.

"Oh, I was doing that again, huh?" she asked timidly as a blush spread across her face, "I didn't know."

"That's why I stopped," Inuyasha explained.

"Huh?"

"I didn't want to feel like I was making you do that. I wanted you to be aware of what you were doing with me."

"Inuyasha…" Kagome breathed in admiration. She smiled down at him then braced her hands a little further down his chest before grinding against him lightly.

Inuyasha hissed in a breath and gripped her hips tightly.

"Kagome?"

"It's alright, Inuyasha," she said leaning closer to his face, "I know what I'm doing this time. I want to."

Inuyasha needed no other motivation and leaned up on one elbow to claim her lips. The other hand stayed firmly on Kagome's hip as he thrust up against her again, a little harder this time. Her breathing became irregular along with his, and he heard the moans that were being smothered by his mouth.

He still wasn't all that sure of what it was they were doing. He knew what the basics of mating were from what his instincts told him, and this definitely wasn't it. Maybe Kagome knew, he'd have to ask her about it - when he managed to not be embarrassed about it that is.

He was pulled from his thoughts when he felt Kagome move away from him and get off the bed.

"Kagome?"

"I'll be right back. Don't move."

"Where are you going?" he asked, rising up on both elbows to look at her.

"I just need to get something. Stay there."

He nodded and watched as she carefully opened the door and then took off silently down the hall. He watched the door way until she came back a few minutes later with a pair of hand towels.

"What are those for?" he asked as she laid them on the bed beside them and straddled him again.

"So you won't mess up your clothes again," she replied quietly as a deep blush spread completely across her face.

"O-oh," he said, sporting a blush of his own.

Kagome's hands planted on his chest and began to slowly pull open his shirts. It startled Inuyasha that clothes were actually coming off this time and he stopped her.

"Kagome, I…"

Kagome looked a little embarrassed.

"I'm sorry. You didn't want me to touch you? I-I won't, if you don't want me to."

Inuyasha shook his head.

"That's not it. It's just…this…and we…we can't…"

Kagome realized what it was he was trying to say.

"It's okay, Inuyasha. We weren't going to. There are ways to do this without having sex, like we did before remember? I just wanted to touch you more this time. Is that alright?"

Inuyasha relaxed visibly.

"Y-you can touch me, if you want. I don't mind."

"O-okay."

Her hands were on him again, this time freeing his shirts from his hakama to open them fully. When they were loose enough, he pulled his arms free of the sleeves and rested his hands on her hips, leaving him shirtless beneath her. Her hands came to his chest a little hesitantly at first, but she gained confidence when Inuyasha seemed to enjoy her touch. Her fingers were dancing lightly all over his chest and abdomen, and Inuyasha was bordering on trembling.

'_I never imagined, that just being touched could feel like this. I wonder, would it be the same for Kagome, if I touched her this way?_'

His thoughts were broken by the feeling of a pair of lips placing a kiss on his solar plexus. His breath hitched - that had felt much different than just a simple touch. Kagome paused as if to gauge his reaction, and when it seemed as though he wasn't displeased she kissed him again a little further to the left this time. Inuyasha started squirming the closer she got to his nipple - this was feeling way better than he ever thought it would. Without really thinking about it, his hands slid from her hips down her thighs, and rested on her knees. In his mind he registered his fingers toying with the hem of her dress, and decided that he should try some exploration of his own.

"Is it alright…if I touch you like that…Kagome?" he asked between breaths. When had he started panting?

Kagome lifted her head to look him in the eye and nodded.

"You can touch me…however you like Inuyasha."

He nodded in understanding, and when she went back to paying attention to his chest, he slid his hands back up her thighs, under the dress this time. She was so warm and soft to the touch. He stopped just short of her butt, all the times Miroku had been beaten to a bloody pulp for touching that part coming to mind. He shook the thoughts clear and decided to go for it anyway, and slid his hands back the rest of the way to cup her. He beamed when she moaned softly and started grinding at him again. Deciding to experiment a bit, Inuyasha started squeezing the flesh in his hands gently, and was rewarded by her pressing to him just a little bit harder. He accidentally grazed her with his claws, but was delighted to find that she enjoyed the feeling and shivered.

Without really thinking about it, his hands slid further under the dress to rest on her bare waist. When he noticed where his hands were, he came to the realization that he wanted to touch more of her, see more of her.

"Kagome?"

"Hmm?" Kagome questioned, looking up at him through hooded eyes.

"Can I…umm…" he moved his hands a little higher, taking the dress with them in an attempt to show her what he wanted.

When Kagome felt his hands move, she looked over her shoulder to see that her dress was ridden up and wasn't even covering her lower half anymore. She blushed when she caught on to what he wanted.

"Oh, umm…" she said nervously. Was she really ready to be naked - well mostly naked - in front of him?

Kagome took a deep breath to gather her nerve, and sat up on him. Inuyasha took it wrong at first, thinking that he had wanted too much and that now she wanted to stop. She surprised him though when she lifted her arms over her head and smiled at him. He could see the dark blush on her face and could smell her apprehension, but that smile told him that she was willing to go along with what he wanted. Smiling back at her, he shifted his hands higher and took the dress off over her head, then tossed it to the floor.

He looked up at her in awe as he smoothed his hands over her shoulders and down her arms. He hadn't known that she wasn't wearing that 'bra' contraption of hers under the dress, so she now sat above him with just that little scrap of cloth between her legs. He'd seen her naked before when she was bathing in the feudal era, but he had never been this close before. Never been able to touch or admire her before.

Kagome experienced a sudden bout of embarrassment as a result of Inuyasha's open staring. Unable to stop herself, she quickly crossed her arms across her breasts, and consequently blocked Inuyasha's view.

When Kagome's arms came up to cover herself, Inuyasha's gaze immediately snapped to her face. She was embarrassed? He sat up with her still sitting on his crotch and gently pulled her arms away. Kagome looked at him with surprise.

"You don't need to do that, Kagome," he said, wrapping one arm around her waist, "You're beautiful, and, I want to be able to see you."

Kagome's eyes widened at the praise and let her hands rest on his shoulders. When he was sure that she wasn't going to reject him out of embarrassment, Inuyasha reached up with his right hand and lightly stroked the side of her left breast with his thumb. Kagome gasped, but he wasn't sure if it was a good gasp, that is until she leaned back so he had better access to her. Supporting her with the arm around her waist, Inuyasha remembered what she had done to him, and started trailing his fingers over her breast. First he traced around her breast, being careful of his claws but also grazing her lightly from time to time when he remembered that she had liked it before. He then cupped her breast in his palm and lightly flicked his thumb over her nipple. He didn't need to wonder if she was enjoying it - she had tossed her head back and was panting and moaning from every touch. He then remembered what it felt like to have her kiss him.

'_Would she like that?_'

Deciding to chance it, Inuyasha leaned down and kissed the valley between her breasts before slowly travelling over to her right breast. Kagome nearly screamed when his mouth closed over her nipple, and she ground into him - hard.

'_Guess that means yes,_' he thought as he met her thrusts.

The pace started to quicken and when he thought that Kagome must be getting close, she shifted and wrapped her legs around him tightly.

"Inu…yasha," she panted out breathlessly.

Inuyasha's pride just about flew through the roof when she moaned his name. He couldn't believe that he was evoking those sounds from her, making her respond to him in the ways that she was.

He was surprised when he felt one of Kagome's hands on his jaw, urging his head up. He released her breast and looked up at her, only to have Kagome's mouth latch onto his in a deep kiss. Her rocking against him became harder and more hurried, and he assumed that she was very close to her release. Moving the hand that was on her waist lower, he firmly pressed his hand to her tailbone to hold her in place and ground up into her, and that was all she needed. Her legs tightened around him like a vice as her body seized up, and he swallowed the cry she made. She clung to him tightly as she caught her breath, and he then realized something. She had released, but he hadn't. He wasn't sure how to go about this situation. He was close, painfully close, but he didn't want Kagome to have to keep going if she had already finished. While he was wondering about this, Kagome's hands came to his chest and pushed him back down to the bed before crawling off to his side. He looked up at her in confusion when she reached for the hand towels. She looked down at him and saw his confused look.

"You didn't finish right?" she asked with a blush on her face. Inuyasha blushed as well and shook his head 'no'. Kagome blushed a little deeper, "I'm going to help you finish."

Before he could ask what she meant, Kagome had pulled and loosened the tie on his hakama. Inuyasha's eyes shot open and he rose up on his elbows.

"K-Kagome!"

Kagome stopped what she was doing and looked up at him.

"W-will you let me do this for you, Inuyasha? If you don't like it, just say so and I'll stop."

Her eyes were pleading with him, and he couldn't say no to her. He leaned back into the bed again, signalling that she could go ahead. He felt her move his hakama and froze when she managed to free him of his fundoshi. He was sure his face was the colour of his fire rat clothes. She was touching him **_there_**.

Kagome paused for a moment in what she was doing. She gulped as she stared down at Inuyasha's erect member. She took a deep breath as she prepared herself to do what she had started. Taking one of the towels in her hand, Kagome thought for a moment about how to go about this, before taking the head of his member and cupping it in her palm through the towel. She felt Inuyasha tremble, but he didn't stop her so she assumed that it was okay. She took her other hand and hesitantly trailed her fingers along his length, watching his face to see his reaction.

Inuyasha's mouth flew open and he made a choking sound as he grasped at the bedcovers. No way was he going to stop her if she wanted to touch him, that felt way too good to give up. She gripped him in her hand and started pumping him slowly. Inuyasha thought he was going to die.

"Ka-gome," he growled out through his teeth as he started to thrust his hips in time with her hand.

Kagome guessed what it was that he wanted, and started pumping him faster. Inuyasha was growling, groaning, and panting beneath her, and it took only a few more strokes before he broke. As soon as she felt him cumming, Kagome leaned up and kissed him, silencing the cry of her name that probably would have alerted the household to their activities.

When he was finished, Kagome pulled away to let him catch his breath. She removed the towel that she had used to catch his seed and used the second one to clean up any that had been missed, then got up from the bed and deposited both towels in her clothes hamper. Inuyasha was so off on his little high that he didn't even notice her moving.

When she came back to the bed, Kagome crawled up to him and curled up against his side and wrapped an arm around his waist. Inuyasha came back to reality and put an arm around her shoulders as he rested his chin on her head.

"Wow," was the only word he seemed capable of voicing.

Kagome giggled.

"I'm guessing you liked it then."

"Mmm," Inuyasha agreed, "You did too, right?"

"Of course," Kagome replied, snuggling closer.

They stayed silent for a moment before Kagome glanced over at her clock.

"We should get dressed. It's still early and someone will probably come looking for us."

"In a minute," he agreed quietly, "I just want to lay here with you like this for a little while."

"Okay," Kagome replied, "Aishiteru."

Inuyasha smiled against Kagome's hair and hugged her a little tighter.

'_I love you too._'

Down in the kitchen, Inukigo was just finishing up explaining courting and the concept of mates to Kagome's family. She was just about to say something when a scent hit her nose and she froze, her face turning a little green. Mama noticed the look on Inukigo's face and she looked at her with concern.

"Daijoubou, Inukigo? Do you feel sick again?"

Inukigo looked at the woman and laughed nervously.

"No, I'm fine Higurashi-san," she replied, continuing on with her explanation. Her mind however stayed on what she had just discovered.

'_Geeze, Inuyasha. Isn't it a bit early for that? And while her whole family is up and about too. You've got some guts though, I'll give you that._'

Trying her best to ignore the scent that only she could pick up, Inukigo went on with her discussion with Kagome's family, for the moment trying for the world to seem as though she were none the wiser.

* * *

Geeze, did I really write that? -blush- I'm not hentai, really I'm not…-sigh- Even I'm not convinced with that.

Thanks so much for the reviews! I got so many after I posted the last chapter, and managed to kick myself in the butt and get this chapter out as quickly as possible. Again, a big thanks to everyone that reviewed!

**-MM . org-**

ninja-of-the-night (not signed in) -good thing you made time for this one in your schedule, told you that you'd need it snicker

Patriot (not signed in) -wow, can you like, read my mind or something? eyes shift around nervously You're pretty close to my ideas there, but I'm not going to give away exactly what's going to happen. But I will tell you this - Sesshoumaru is going to do something for her to prove herself, you'll have to wait to find out exactly what, lol.

**-FF . net-**

(I was very surprised by the number of reviews I got here. I haven't been getting many since I started, not even for my first story. Big thanks you guys)

froggiesrcool -I'm glad that you like the Kouga/Inukigo pairing. About Ayame showing up, I'm still not sure, but I'll tell you now what my opinion is on Kouga and his relationship with Ayame. For starters, I think that it is non-existent. Ayame doesn't exist in the manga, she was created solely for the anime. And even then, I don't believe that Kouga ever felt those kind of feelings for her when he said he would marry her. I saw that as his way of making her feel better, not showing he loved her. If he loved her, he would have remembered her and the promise he made when she shows up. Now, about the fights…while I am going to get to more action soon, I'm not going to write up meaningless fights between Inuyasha and Kagome. I know that they argue a lot in the anime, but in this fic, they are 'engaged' and have a better understanding of each other. Also, with Inukigo showing up, Inuyasha has mellowed out a bit and is more agreeable. I meant to address this in the fic, but this is because she has brought a sense of normalcy back to his life - what I mean is that Inukigo was with him all his life, and having her back has made him feel more at ease. I hope this explains it. About the fluff…while I don't consider it suffocating (I got the impression that you did from your review), I'll admit that I write a lot of it and try to keep it to reasonable levels. Wow, this is a long reply…

Kiyashi - Thanks very much, I'm glad you like my drawings. Umm…I managed to get this chapter out relatively quickly, so don't go too crazy, okay? lol

Skitzo

Pyrinsomniac -yes, Aniue is the equivalent of Aneue. It is the most respectful term for big brother, so that should give you an idea of how much she thought of, and still thinks of Sesshoumaru.

gaurdianangel -thanks. Wow, I'm surprised to learn that people are telling each other about my fic. It's a really nice thing to know, lol. I won't be making up another character for that purpose, and like I said before, in my opinion, Kouga doesn't have any feelings for Ayame in the first place. So if I do have her show up, she's going to cause conflict, but not in the sense that Kouga will be in indecision over her and Inukigo.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

It was late the next afternoon before Inuyasha, Kagome, and Inukigo made their way back through the well to the feudal era, and Inuyasha was not in the best mood.

The night before, when he and Kagome had ventured back downstairs, Inukigo had sent him a look that proved she had known all along what the two of them had been doing up in Kagome's room. To say he had been embarrassed was an understatement.

Mama had also wanted to talk to Kagome privately after she had learned about how the courtship and mating worked. It turned out that she wanted to set up an appointment for Kagome to go to the hospital and be put on birth control. Kagome had protested, saying that they weren't planning on that until after they defeated Naraku, which could take an unknown amount of time. Mama explained that while she wanted grandchildren, she also wanted Kagome to wait until she was finished school before she had children. Since Naraku could be defeated before that time, she thought it would be best to be prepared for it. Kagome gave in and agreed to go the next day before they returned.

Another thing that had put a damper on his mood was that Kagome had ignored him in favour of his sister for most of the night. She seemed to be happy to have a girl to show the developments of the modern era to, like the hot bath. Inukigo had fallen in love with it immediately. That and all of the different smelling soaps that Kagome owned as well. She had staying in there for nearly an hour before Kagome went in and dragged her out. Inuyasha had laughed at her and called her a prune, which had resulted in a hard thump on the back of the head. He wasn't laughing later though, when Kagome decided to have 'girl time' with Inukigo and do her hair while they talked.

One of the topics of discussion had been how Inukigo managed to get through the well. After much deliberation, it was decided that since she was Inuyasha's twin, and had a very similar aura, the well had just let her through, unable to distinguish the difference between the two hanyous. Without a better explanation, that was the one that stuck.

Inuyasha had just sat on the bed looking like a kicked puppy while the two girls laughed and chatted with each other. Inukigo's hair was now a mass of tiny braids, all of them pulled back into a high pony tail. It had taken Kagome hours to complete, and it was after midnight when she finally climbed into the bed with him, while Inukigo slept on the floor.

The three were now back in the feudal era, and when they emerged from the well they were surprised to see Shippou there waiting for them.

"Kagome!" he yelled, jumping into her arms.

"Hi, Shippou-chan," Kagome replied, giving him a hug, "What are you doing out here all by yourself? Where are Sango-chan and Miroku-sama?"

"They're back in the village," he explained, "Entertaining a visitor."

"Visitor?" Kagome asked.

"Yeah," Shippou nodded, "Miroku and Sango sent me to give you a heads up when you came through the well."

"Who is it?" Inuyasha asked.

"Kouga."

"What!" Inuyasha growled, "That mangy wolf. He'd better not be thinking of sniffing around you, Kagome. Otherwise I'm gonna gut him."

"Calm down," Kagome chastised.

"Yeah, besides he's not looking for Kagome," Shippou said.

"What?" Inuyasha said, now confused, "Why is he here then?"

"That's what surprised us too," Shippou said, "He showed up early this morning, but he didn't even mention wanting to see Kagome. The only person he asked to see," he turned to look at the other female of the group, "Was Inukigo."

Both Inuyasha and Inukigo stood there with their mouths hanging open.

"M-me?" Inukigo stammered after a few seconds of being in shock, "Why?"

"I don't know," Shippou answered, "He just asked for you, and since we didn't know where you went Sango, Miroku, and Kaede offered to let him stay at the hut while we waited for you to come back," he seemed to realize something then, "I didn't know you could go through the well."

"Neither did I," Inukigo answered distractedly, not really paying attention to what she was saying, "It was an accident."

Shippou didn't seem to notice her far off tone.

"Oh, well, we should probably go see why Kouga was looking for you."

Inukigo nodded and followed behind Kagome and Inuyasha, still deep in thought.

'_Why would he come all the way here to see me?_'

She knew that she liked him, she wasn't denying that. The picture of him fighting with Koorimizu at the river, then later of him running beside her through the forest came to her mind. She felt her heart race and her face heat - safe to say that she was physically attracted to him. She found his personality appealing as well. She had been surprised when he showed concern for her, both when asking about the injury that he had given her and when Inuyasha had upset her. How much did she like him, really?

Inuyasha must have noticed that there was something on her mind, because he slowed and came to walk beside her.

"Ooi," he called, pulling her from her thoughts, "Why would Kouga come looking for you?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly, "I was wondering the same thing."

Satisfied that she was telling him the truth, Inuyasha nodded and they remained silent as they continued on to the village.

Inukigo was the first to pick up Kouga's scent, and she could tell the moment that Inuyasha picked it up. He started growling low in his throat, signifying that he was not happy about the wolf demon being in his territory. Kagome tried her best to keep him calm, and managed to get him to cease his growling, but he was still on edge.

Stepping up to the hut, the voices of Miroku, Sango, and Kouga could be heard, the two humans inquiring about the amount of demon activity that Kouga had encountered recently. The conversation stopped however, when Inuyasha pulled back the reed door covering and glared into the hut.

"What the hell are you doing here, wolf?"

Kouga just looked up at him.

"I thought the kit would have told you. I came looking for Inukigo."

"Yeah, I know that," Inuyasha answered, his already slight patience wearing thin, "What I want to know is why."

Kouga shrugged and looked away.

"That isn't any of your business."

"Nani?" Inuyasha ground out through his teeth.

"I said it's none of your business," he then looked past Inuyasha to the two women behind him, "Hey, Kagome, Inukigo."

"Hi Kouga," Kagome answered.

Inukigo just nodded in acknowledgement, still curious as to why he wanted to see her.

Kouga stood up, and walked right by the fuming Inuyasha to stand next to them just outside the door. He turned and waved into the hut.

"It was nice talking to you," he called to Miroku and Sango, who answered the same.

He then looked down at Inukigo, who was watching him curiously.

"Would you come for a walk with me?" he asked, tilting his head to one side.

"I-"

"No way!" Inuyasha yelled, cutting her off, "She's not going anywhere with you!"

Inukigo and Kouga both shot him a glare, while Kagome just sighed and shook her head.

"C'mon dog boy, leave them alone," she muttered, pushing the now sputtering Inuyasha into the hut, "Go ahead, Inukigo-chan, I'll keep him busy."

Inukigo looked at her gratefully, and then turned back to Kouga.

"Sure."

Kouga smiled at her, then turned to lead the way back towards the forest. When they had entered the cover of the trees, Inukigo spoke.

"Kouga, why did you come all the way here?"

Kouga smiled down at her.

"Is it hard to believe that I just wanted to see you?" he asked.

Inukigo blushed lightly.

"Like you would come just to see me. There must be something else that you want."

Kouga shrugged nonchalantly.

"Maybe…" he then gave her a wicked grin, "Wanna go for a run?"

Inukigo's heart jumped from his smile.

"Sure," she managed to get out with a small nod.

The smile never left Kouga's face as he turned and sprinted away from her. Inukigo was still curious as to what he wanted with her, and ran off after him. Their run was different this time around. There was no challenge, so they both ran at a sedate pace side by side, enjoying each other's company. Inukigo almost completely forgot about her curiosity as she ran beside him, watching him. He was just the same as she remembered him. She blushed at the course her thoughts were taking.

They had been running for about ten minutes, before Kouga slowed down and came to a stop near a large lake. The sun was just beginning to set, and with the pink and orange light reflecting off the glass-like water it made for a very beautiful scene.

As Inukigo came to stand beside him, she tested the air, and was surprised to find that they were on the edge of Inuyasha's territory. Her curiosity came back full force, and she looked up at Kouga with a questioning look.

"Kouga, why come all the way here?"

Kouga looked down at her and smiled.

"I wanted to talk to you," he answered, "And I had a feeling that your brother wouldn't be to happy about that, so I wanted to make sure I got to speak to you in case he interrupted."

Inukigo chuckled.

"You're probably right. Kagome will keep him busy for a while though."

Kouga laughed too, and then walked over and sat down at the edge of the lake. When she didn't join him immediately, he turned and waved her over. Inukigo sat down beside him, and both silently looked out over the water for a few moments before Kouga spoke.

"Inukigo, what do you think of me?" he asked, not taking his eyes from the water.

Inukigo's head snapped in his direction.

"Huh? What?"

"What do you think of me?" he repeated, turning to look at her this time, "Just answer truthfully, don't worry about upsetting me or anything."

Inukigo looked back out over the lake.

"Well," she started, "You're very strong, fast too, and an excellent fighter. You also seem to be very loyal and caring, but stubborn and hard-headed as well."

She looked over at Kouga and saw that he was smiling at her.

"You forgot my good looks and charming personality."

"Yeah, there's that too, not to mention your modesty," Inukigo replied, turning away with a blush, not noticing the colour that came to Kouga's cheeks as well. Once she had gotten her face under control she turned to him again, "Why ask me that?"

Kouga just smiled.

"I wanted to know, that's all," he then turned to face her fully, "I see a beautiful, powerful woman, who has lived a hard life, but it has made her stronger. She is kind-hearted, despite the hardships she has faced, and she is viciously loyal to her friends and family, so much so that she would die for them. A very admirable and honourable woman."

"Kouga…" Inukigo breathed. Why was he saying these things to her?

"Inukigo," he started, making sure he had her full attention, "The reason that I wanted to see you…I wanted to ask…would you allow me to court you?"

Inukigo's eyes widened, and one of her hands raised to cover her mouth. She was shocked when she felt tears brim in her eyes.

'_Oh Kami! I-I'm going to cry!_'

"Inukigo?" Kouga asked, a touch of concern in his voice. This wasn't a reaction that he had expected. Had he upset her somehow?

"Naze?" she asked quietly from behind her hand, "Why would you ask me that?"

She prayed that he wasn't toying with her. Prayed that he meant the things he was saying, things she had believed all her life that she would never hear.

Kouga smiled at her warmly.

"I'm asking you because from the moment I met you, my instincts have been telling me that it's right. That and I like you. So, what do you say?"

Inukigo couldn't help it. She shut her eyes as the tears came streaming down her face, and nodded shakily.

Kouga moved in quickly, wrapping his arms around her tightly. When she had asked him 'why' he had understood. She had grown up with the belief that because she was a hanyou, there would never be anyone who would want her. Determined to drive away any doubts and fears that she had, he pulled her to him and set her in his lap. Her face buried into the crook of his neck, and he simply held her as she cried. A few minutes later, her tears stopped and he pulled away to look at her face. He lifted his hands to wipe away her remaining tears with his thumbs, and she smiled at the tender act.

"I'll stick close to you guys from now on so I can see you," he started to explain, "I would travel with you, but your brother wouldn't like that, and there's no reason to cause unnecessary stress."

"Okay," she replied, nodding.

Kouga smiled down at her.

"There's one more thing…"

Inukigo looked up at him with her head tilted to the side in question.

"About that favour you owe me…I was wondering if I could collect on it."

Inukigo eyed him suspiciously.

"That depends…what do you want?"

Kouga looked back out over the lake, which was now nearly black in the waning light.

"I was wondering," he turned back to her, "If you would let me kiss you."

Inukigo's eyes widened and her mouth dropped open.

"A-are you serious?"

Kouga shifted uneasily.

"If you don't want me to, that's fine. I'll just get my favour later."

Inukigo looked up at him with a blush on her face. Should she let him kiss her? The longer she looked at him, the more she realized…that she wanted him to.

"A-alright," she answered nervously.

Kouga looked a little surprised.

"You sure?" he asked.

She nodded, and Kouga lifted one hand to rest on the underside of her chin, keeping his other arm wrapped around her. Inukigo shivered when she felt his warm breath on her lips, then Kouga's mouth was pressed to hers. She wasn't sure what to do at first, but Kouga went slowly, his lips gliding over hers softly, and her eyes fluttered closed as she began to respond to him. When Kouga broke them apart for a breath, he looked into her eyes, trying to gauge her reaction. Inukigo licked her lips nervously, then rose up to kiss him again. Kouga's hands shifted, the one that had been under her chin moving to cup her jaw, while the other came up to rest on her nape, his fingers rubbing against her braids. The kiss took a different turn when, without thinking, Inukigo tried to lick his lips. Kouga never missed a beat, his tongue coming out to meet hers and gently coax her mouth open. Inukigo moaned softly when his tongue swept through her mouth and played with hers.

When he broke off the second kiss, he wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder as they both panted to catch their breath. Looking over her shoulder, Kouga grasped one of the many small braids and began rolling it around between his fingers.

"I don't like these," he said after a few moments of silence.

"Hmm?"

"You should take them out."

"What are you thinking, telling me what I should or shouldn't do?" Inukigo asked, though without any heat.

"I'm thinking that I want to know what it feels like to run my fingers through your hair. Can't do that with all these braids."

Inukigo blushed lightly and smiled.

"I'll take them out," she answered.

They were quiet again for a moment, before Kouga pulled them both to their feet.

"I should get going. Inukuro is gonna think I made off with you."

Inukigo laughed.

"I'll worry about him, but you're right. He probably won't be too happy when I get back."

Kouga pecked her quickly on the lips then stepped away from her.

"I'll see you later."

Inukigo nodded.

"Alright."

Kouga flashed her a smile then turned and sped off, his whirlwind kicking up dust in his wake. Inukigo stood there for a moment with a tiny smile on her face, then she started giggling and grinned widely. Her giggling escalated to full out laughter as she turned and sped off back towards the village, but before she got there she couldn't help but split the serenity of the forest with a loud joyous howl.

Back in Kaede's hut, everyone heard the howl and looked towards the door curiously.

"What was that?" Kagome asked, "A wolf?"

"No," Inuyasha replied, standing and going to the door.

He recognized that howl. It was Inukigo, he had no doubt. But she hadn't done that in a very long time. What had happened to make her so happy?

Kagome followed him as he walked just outside the hut and waited for Inukigo.

"Inuyasha, what was that howl?"

"That howl was Inukigo," he threw over his shoulder.

"Inukigo?" Kagome asked, "Why would she be howling?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Inuyasha replied.

The two of them waited silently, and a few moments later Inukigo could be seen running towards the hut. As soon as he saw her Inuyasha knew that something was different about her. It wasn't just that she had a silly looking grin on her face and seemed to be off in her own little world, but she just seemed to radiate happiness. Inuyasha hadn't seen her like this since their father had died.

"Ooi," he called to her, "You went for an awfully long walk."

"Oh," Inukigo answered absentmindedly, "I hadn't noticed."

'_Okay, this is getting strange._'

"Where did you go with that wolf anyways?"

She shrugged her shoulders.

"Just for a run. Then we stopped and talked for a little while," she answered, a smile still on her face.

Inuyasha was getting more and more curious by the second, and he happened to lean in closer to her and took a sniff. What he caught made his eyes grow wide.

"Like hell all you did was talk! You-he-the two of you-" he rambled on, his voice getting higher and higher, "He kissed you!"

Inukigo's expression changed to one of total embarrassment and her face turned bright red.

"I-I-"

"I swear if he forced himself on you I'll kill 'em! I'll-"

"Inuyasha, osuwari!"

"GAH!"

Inuyasha's face smacked into the ground and curses began flying from his mouth. Inukigo looked at Kagome gratefully for the save, and Kagome smiled before poking her head into the hut.

"Sango-chan, grab my bag. We're going for a bath."

Sango had the bag snatched up and was outside in moments, and both girls hauled Inukigo off before Inuyasha was up off the ground.

Miroku popped out of the hut, Shippou clinging to his shoulder.

"What was that about?"

Inuyasha grumbled to himself as he stood up and brushed off his clothes.

"Stupid, mangy wolf had his paws all over Inukigo again."

"Ahh…so that's what you were referring to when you shouted 'he kissed you'. They must be taking a liking to one another than."

Inuyasha's head snapped towards the monk.

"What do you mean?"

Shippou sighed and shook his head.

"C'mon, Inuyasha, you know that Inukigo wouldn't have let Kouga touch her, let alone kiss her, unless she wanted him too. Even I can see that, and I'm supposed to be the little kid here."

Inuyasha growled and threatened the kit with his fist.

"Why you…"

"He has a point Inuyasha," Miroku interjected, trying to save the small youkai who was now hiding behind him.

Inuyasha glared at him.

"You should be happy for her, Inuyasha," Miroku said with a frown on his face, "She deserves to be happy as much as you do, doesn't she?"

Inuyasha looked away. As much as he hated to admit it, Miroku was right. Inukigo deserved to be happy after all she had been through. Even if it was Kouga that was making her happy.

Miroku sighed, seeing that Inuyasha had settled down.

"I know that you don't like Kouga, but it's Inukigo's choice."

Inuyasha nodded.

"Aa, but if he hurts her, I really will kill him. Kagome won't be stopping me."

* * *

Inukigo was still being dragged along by an overeager Kagome and Sango, only now they had begun an interrogation.

"So what happened, Inukigo-chan?" Kagome asked, "Inuyasha said Kouga kissed you, is that true?"

"Umm…" Inukigo said, her face flaming red.

"I guess that means yes," Sango laughed.

Kagome smiled back at the embarrassed hanyou.

"That's great, Inukigo-chan! How did that end up happening?"

"Well," Inukigo started, finally getting her embarrassment under control, "We talked for a while first, and then he asked me what I thought of him. I told him, and then he said what he thought of me."

"Ooooo, really?" Kagome gushed, "What did he say?"

"He…he told me that I was beautiful…" Inukigo replied with a wistful smile on her face.

Kagome and Sango smiled at each other seeing Inukigo's happiness.

"What happened after that?" Sango pressed.

"Then he told me the reason he wanted to talk to me," Inukigo said, then continued a little more quietly, "He asked me if he could court me."

Both Sango and Kagome stopped walking to look back at Inukigo. Once what she had said set in, they both sported huge smiles and hugged the quiet hanyou girl.

"That's wonderful Inukigo-chan!" Kagome exclaimed. She then looked at the girl's face and was shocked, "Inukigo-chan, are you crying?"

Inukigo lifted a hand to her cheek and felt the wetness that was gathering there.

"I cried then too. I…I asked him why he wanted to court me, and he said it was because his instincts told him it was right and that he liked me. I just couldn't help it then, I started crying."

Kagome and Sango smiled.

"You're very happy, aren't you Inukigo-chan?"

"Hai," she answered, wiping her hands over her cheeks.

"We're very happy for you, Inukigo-chan," Sango said.

Inukigo stilled and looked down at the ground. A soft smile came to her face and she continued walking to the spring with Kagome and Sango following behind her.

Once they reached the spring, the three girls chatted idly as they undressed. Wrapped in towels, Kagome and Sango settled in the spring, while Inukigo sat at the edge with her legs in the water. She pulled the tie that was binding her hair, and the multitude of braids fell against her back. Shifting them so that they were over her shoulders, Inukigo began removing the small ties that had been holding the braids together at the ends. Kagome watched her in confusion.

"You don't need to take those out to wash your hair, Inukigo-chan," she said, catching the girl's attention.

Inukigo paused in what she was doing and looked up at Kagome.

"Gomen, Kagome, you spent so much time doing these. But, I want to take them out…" she trailed off, mumbling something that Kagome and Sango didn't quite catch. The blush on Inukigo's face caught their interest though.

"What was that, Inukigo-chan?" Sango questioned.

"I said that…Kouga wanted me to take them out, he said he didn't like them," she explained timidly, not able to look at either of her companions.

Kagome and Sango looked at each other, then at Inukigo in shock.

"You mean you're going to do something just because Kouga wanted you to?" Kagome asked in an incredulous tone.

Inukigo didn't reply, just looked down at the braid she was nervously rolling around between her fingers. The other two girls took her silence as confirmation.

"Wow," Kagome said, "I never thought you to be one to do something just because someone else wanted you to."

"I'm not," Inukigo replied, "It's just…"

"You really like him, huh?" Sango offered.

Inukigo nodded and went back to removing the ties from her hair.

"Don't tell Inuyasha the reason I'm doing this," she said, "I don't even want to think of what his reaction would be to it."

"Don't worry, Inukigo-chan, we won't say a word," Kagome assured.

"Thank you," Inukigo said quietly as she started working the braids out of her hair.

Kagome walked over to her and started to help her.

"Don't mention it."

Sango leaned back against a rock in the middle of the spring.

"So, Inukigo-chan," she started slowly, "Why didn't Kouga like your hairstyle?"

Inukigo blushed deeply. Would the questions never end?

* * *

"My lord, if you don't mind my asking, why is it that we are passing through this area again? We were here not but a few days ago, and everything was in order then."

"Quiet, Jaken."

"Y-yes, my lord. Forgive me for questioning you."

Sesshoumaru ignored Jaken's mindless chattering. Rin seemed to realized that the inu youkai lord was deep in thought and remained silent on AhUn's back.

'_It's her scent. I know that I am not mistaken. But she disappeared 52 years ago when Inuyasha was sealed by that priestess. I had thought her dead. I must discover the meaning behind this._'

"Jaken."

"Yes, my lord?"

"You and Rin are to return to the castle. There are matters that I must attend to, alone."

"Understood, Lord Sesshoumaru," Jaken replied with a bow, then climbed up onto AhUn's back with Rin.

"Don't take too long, Sesshoumaru-sama," Rin said with a smile.

Sesshoumaru looked down at the young girl, and suppressed the pang in his heart when for a split second it was a smaller girl smiling up at him, one with silvery white hair and canine ears a top her head. Pushing the memories aside, Sesshoumaru turned and walked away.

'_Is it you, Inukigo? Are you really still alive, imouto?_'

* * *

"Ooi! Stop avoiding me!"

"I'm not avoiding you, Inuyasha."

"Yeah you are! I've been trying to talk to you ever since you came back from your bath with Kagome and Sango, and every time I try to speak, you get up and move away."

In Kaede's small hut, four humans, a kitsune, and a neko demon were trying to get ready for bed while ignoring the two bickering hanyous.

"Inuyasha, I already went through the interrogation from Kagome and Sango. I don't want to have to do it again."

Inuyasha growled.

"I don't care. I need to talk to you, now c'mon," he said, grabbing the back of her collar and pulling her out the door.

"O-Ooi! Let go!"

"Inuyasha," Kagome called in a warning tone.

"It's fine," he called back from outside, "We'll be back in a little while."

Inuyasha managed to drag Inukigo halfway out of the village before she finally worked the collar of her kimono free from his hand.

"Okay, I'll talk to you. Stop dragging me."

"Just making sure you weren't gonna run away," he said and continued walking.

"Yeah, right," Inukigo huffed sarcastically as she followed along behind him.

They walked in silence the rest of the was out of the village, and Inuyasha didn't stop until they reached the Goshinboku. He settled down at the trunk of the tree, and Inukigo sat so she was facing him.

"Alright, Inuyasha. Get it over with," Inukigo said, one arm propped up on her knee and her chin resting on her hand.

Inuyasha sighed before he began speaking.

"Inukigo, I know that you were very happy when you came back from…talking, with Kouga, that howl definitely proved that. I haven't heard you do that since oyaji was alive," he commented with a smile, "But there's something that's getting to me. When I picked up Kouga's scent on you, I smelled something else too. Why were you crying, Inukigo?"

"Huh?" Inukigo started, surprised that he had known, then surprised with herself for not realizing that he would find out.

"What did Kouga do to make you cry?" he asked, his arms crossed and a slight scowl on his face.

Her eyes widened and she nearly laughed. He was really saying 'give me an excuse to beat the wolf to a bloody pulp'.

"I wasn't crying because I was upset Inuyasha," she explained, surprising Inuyasha, "The things that he said to me, they just made me so happy, and I couldn't stop myself from crying," she said, smiling softly as she wrapped her arms around her knees.

Inuyasha shifted so he was a little closer to her.

"You really do like him, huh?" he asked cocking his head to one side.

Inukigo didn't imagine the slight disappointment in his voice.

"Yes," she answered, keeping the lower half of her face hidden behind her knees.

Inuyasha heaved a deep sigh.

"Why'd it have to be Kouga?" he whined.

Inukigo nearly laughed again at his tone and expression. She knew that he wasn't disapproving of a relationship between herself and Kouga, he was just sulking.

"Well, excuse me for not having an abundance of opportunities open to me," she said in mock annoyance.

Inuyasha had the good grace to look sheepish. Inukigo shifted to her knees and moved the remaining distance to him, then tucked her head tightly under his chin to show him that she wasn't being serious.

"I know that the two of you don't get along well," she said snuggling close to him, "I like him…but…if the two of you prove that it's impossible for you to tolerate each other…then I won't let him pursue me."

Inuyasha loosely wrapped his arms around Inukigo's waist.

'_She's willing to give that up, just because I might not like Kouga being around so much,_' he thought sadly.

"Don't worry about that," he said softly, "I just want you to be happy sis, and if Kouga makes you happy then I won't make problems for you," a cynical smirk broke out on his face, though Inukigo couldn't see it, "But if he ever hurts you I'll personally beat him bloody."

Inukigo snorted and pulled back to look up at him.

"You're gonna be looking for excuses to do that now, aren't you?"

The smirk that was still in place on his face was all the answer she needed.

Inukigo sighed and shook her head.

"Such a protective brother you are," she said with a smile on her face, "I don't remember you being like this before."

Inuyasha smiled back at her.

"I missed you, ya know," he said, then his smile drifted from his face, "And well, after hearing about what happened in the two years that you were on your own…I just don't want anything to happen to you, now that you're back with me."

The smile never left Inukigo's face.

"Arigatou, for looking out for me," she said, leaning into him again.

"Don't mention it," he replied, playing with her hair, which she hadn't bothered to tie back. It was only then that he truly realized that her braids were missing, "Ooi, what happened to all the braids that Kagome put in your hair? I thought you liked them."

Inukigo stilled. Damn, she had been hoping that he wouldn't notice that, or at least not bother to mention it.

"Umm…I wanted to?"

Had that sounded as pathetic as she thought it did? She really couldn't lie to save her life when it came to him.

Inuyasha's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Inukigo…"

Why did he have the feeling he knew what was going on?

"Um, hai?"

"Did you take them out because you wanted to, or because _Kouga _wanted you to?" he asked, his tone not revealing any of what he was thinking.

"Uhh…"

"Inukigo, you can't be serious!" he exclaimed, pulling her away from him by the shoulders. She was sporting a blush and couldn't look him in the eye in her embarrassment, "You're telling me, that Kouga wanted you to do something, and you went ahead and did it?" he asked incredulously.

"Umm…he said he didn't like them," Inukigo admitted as her blush deepened, "But it's just my hair," she argued, "It's not anything important."

"That's not the point," Inuyasha answered, "It's the principle of the whole thing. He said he didn't like the braids in your hair, and you took them out. You wouldn't have done that if I said I didn't like them."

"Yes I would," Inukigo fumbled, knowing that it wasn't true and he wouldn't believe her, but no way was she going down without some sort of fight, no matter how fruitless it might be.

Inuyasha snorted.

"That's a lie and you know it. I don't even need to use my nose to find out that. You've always been stubborn about doing something when I want you to, but you went ahead with what he wanted right away," Inukigo was confused when she felt Inuyasha tense, "I just want you to be careful. You know how wolf youkai can be…"

"I know," Inukigo replied. She should have known that he was worrying about her, "I promise, I won't go along with everything he says."

Inuyasha nodded his understanding.

"Okay."

They sat there in silence for a few moments before Inuyasha spoke up again.

"So you really like him?" he asked.

"Yes!" Inukigo laughed as she pushed him away and stood up, "C'mon, Kagome's probably waiting for you so she can go to bed," she said with a smile, teasing him a little.

Inuyasha's cheeks tinted a little pink.

"Keh," he snorted as he rose to his feet.

Laughing to herself, Inukigo led the way back to the village, a smile on her face the entire way.

* * *

Kagura stood just inside the doorway of a dimly lit room, tapping her fan against her arm in annoyance at the hanyou sitting on the floor near the far wall.

"So, that's your plan, is it?" she asked.

"Yes," Naraku answered, "Koorimizu failed to fulfill her purpose, therefore it would be futile to try such an attempt again. They would be expecting it and would be prepared. Now that I have two irritating hanyous to deal with instead of just the one, my plans of attack will need some rethinking."

"You're going off into hiding then? Coward," Kagura sneered.

The glare that Naraku sent across the room towards her was deadly, and Kagura subconsciously straightened under the look.

"Remember your place Kagura. I hold your heart, or have you so easily forgotten that?"

Kagura's hand came up to rest on her chest, where her heart would have been if it were not in Naraku's hands. That was not something she could forget.

"No, of course not."

Naraku seemed satisfied with her submission.

"Both you and Kohaku will remain. I want the two of you to keep an eye on things for me. I shall send some…assistance later."

"Understood," Kagura answered, "Will that be all?"

"Yes, you may go."

Kagura stepped back out of the room, then closed the shoji behind her before walking off down the deserted hallway.

'_What are you plotting now, Naraku?_'

* * *

"Sankon tessou!"

"Hikari shou tessou!"

"You know, this is getting rather boring," Miroku commented, leaning against his staff.

"I know what you mean, Houshi-sama. It's been two whole days, and every time we run into demons, those two do all the work. While it is interesting to watch, I have to agree that this is getting boring," Sango said.

Kagome laughed nervously as she watched Inuyasha and Inukigo along with the rest of her companions. The two hanyous seemed to be able to handle just about anything all on their own. That wasn't an entirely good thing it seemed, because Miroku and Sango were starting to feel a little left out. Shippou on the other hand, couldn't seem to get enough of it and was practically bouncing around in his excitement.

"Sugoi! Look at them go!"

Miroku and Sango continued to gripe silently while Inuyasha and Inukigo finished off the pair of boar youkai that had charged them from the bushes a few moments before. Neither of them held Shikon shards, rather they had been attracted to the few shards that Kagome was carrying. The demons weren't very strong, so Kagome had a feeling that the siblings were putting on a show since they didn't finish them in the first strike.

'_Why do those two have to show off? Sango-chan and Miroku-sama are already kind of upset with them…_'

There was a painful roar from the small battlefield, and then both of the boar youkai disintegrated into dust. Inuyasha and Inukigo looked rather proud of themselves; that is they did, until they saw the looks that Sango and Miroku were sending them.

Inukigo cringed back to stand beside Inuyasha.

"I don't think they're too happy with us."

"Ya think? Those glares could freeze hell over."

"Maybe we should have let them fight the demons instead…"

"It's a little late for that now," he hissed back.

"Don't get mad at me," she countered.

Kagome took the initiative and hurriedly ran to stand between the two groups.

"Um…why don't we all take a break and stop for lunch?" she said cheerfully.

The rest of her companions deflated with little fuss and agreed with her. Sango and Miroku turned and began walking towards a spot they could rest in, while Inuyasha and Inukigo walked towards Kagome. Inukigo walked by her with a smile, while Inuyasha came up beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Thanks," he whispered in her ear.

Kagome shoved at him playfully, but not hard enough to get him to release her.

"It was your own fault. You and Inukigo have been hogging all the youkai battles from them for the last two days, and that's not counting that fight with those oni before we went back to the village. Sango-chan and Miroku-sama are starting to get bored."

"Keh," Inuyasha grumbled as they came upon the rest of the group, "I'm gonna go catch something for us to eat," he said, removing his arm.

"No, I'm going, Inuyasha," Inukigo spoke up, catching his attention.

"Why?" he asked.

"I'm taking Shippou with me," she replied, startling the kit, "We're going to use this as an opportunity for a little practice."

"Really?" Shippou asked, looking up at the female hanyou. Inukigo smiled and nodded.

"Okay," Inuyasha replied, sitting down beside Kagome.

Inukigo offered Shippou her shoulder, and once the kit had climbed on she ran off into the forest. She ran for just a few minutes, sniffing tentatively, until she stopped when she found what she was looking for. She picked Shippou up off her shoulder, then set him on the ground and crouched behind him.

"There's a rabbit somewhere in the bushes in front of us," she whispered when he looked up at her curiously, "I want you to find it."

Shippou turned his gaze to the bushes in front of them, and started sniffing at the air. He frowned when he couldn't pick up the scent of the rabbit. All he could smell was Inukigo and the trees, grass, and bushes. Noticing his dilemma, Inukigo leaned down closer to him, resting a hand across his eyes.

"You're letting your mind wander," she whispered, "Until your sense of smell is more developed, you're going to have to concentrate solely on what you're trying to find. Now, keep your eyes closed," she said, removing her hand, "Ignore me, and the rest of the smells around here and think of only the rabbit that's hiding in those bushes. When you have it's scent you-" Inukigo froze and stopped talking as a shiver ran up her back.

'_What was that?_'

"Inukigo?" Shippou said, catching her attention.

"Oh, sorry Shippou. After you have it's scent, use your ears to determine exactly where it is."

Shippou nodded and went to his task, leaving Inukigo to dwell on the feeling that was now unnerving her.

'_What was that shiver? It almost feels like something…no someone is coming. But who?_'

"I think I smell it," Shippou said quietly, excitement seeping through his voice.

Inukigo focused her attention on the kit again.

"Good, now listen for it. When you hear it, take off after it as fast as you can."

Shippou nodded and went back to his task, and Inukigo's mind started wandering again. She distractedly noticed when Shippou shot off into the bushes, and jumped up as well when it was clear from the sounds coming from the underbrush that he wouldn't catch it. She cut the rabbit off, and had grabbed it and broken it's neck before the animal had a chance to know what was happening. Shippou wandered out of the bushes a moment later with a downtrodden expression on his face.

"I couldn't catch it," he said sadly.

"It's alright," Inukigo said with a smile, "You did really well for a first try, and it was more an exercise for your senses anyway. The important thing is that you were able to find the rabbit."

Shippou beamed up at her.

"I really did good?"

"Yes," Inukigo replied with a smile, "We'll try it one more time, then I'll catch a few more quickly so we can get back to the others."

"Okay," he replied, climbing up onto her shoulder.

As she was searching for the next prey, Inukigo's thoughts trailed off again.

'_I don't understand this at all. Why is it that I'm getting the feeling that someone is coming? And why do I have a hunch that this doesn't mean anything good?_'

* * *

I managed to update fairly quickly again, I'm so proud of myself! Usually I only get out one chapter a month. Good news is, the semester is almost over, so I'll have more time to write over the summer! Well, here are the review responses.

**- MM . org -**

SilverShadowKitsune - I haven't put an actual full blown lemon in yet for a few reasons, the main one being that it just doesn't fit with the plot to put one in right now. I already have it planned out when the lemon is going to be, so it won't be any sooner. Limes on the other hand…

ninja-of-the-night (not signed in) -Seeing as you liked Kouga's musings in the last chapter, I'm sure you loved the little kiss scene in this one, lol.

inufan625 - Thank you very much for your review. When I was considering that bit about the elders, I was thinking that Kouga never pursued Kagome to that point, so the Elders wouldn't have said anything about it. Another thing I was thinking is that to demons, humans are pretty much insignificant, but hanyous get more of the dirt. So, while they wouldn't approve of a human/demon bonding, they would look down on a hanyou/demon bonding just as much or more so.

Patriot (not signed in) -Well, the scene didn't come out exactly as I first planned it, so the battle between Inukigo and Sesshoumaru in this chapter doesn't really come across as Sesshoumaru getting Inukigo to prove herself. It will work towards that though. Um, when I came up with Inukigo being able to go though the well, I just thought it would be fun to have her be able to go through. I never planned for it to have any major meaning to the plot, or have anyone else go through.

**- FF . net -**

Pyrinsomniac -Ha, I never thought about what she would be like trying to get back outside to the well. I'm thinking running like crazy while holding her breath, lol. I haven't thought ahead yet to how often Inukigo will be coming through the well. Maybe not all that often, judging from her first experience. Like I said before, no one else is coming through the well, so no one has to worry about Naraku showing up in the modern era.

Patriot1776

Skitzo - Thank you very much. Seeing as how you like the fluff, well here's some nice fluff between Inukigo and Kouga, lol.


	12. Chapter 12

Finally got around to updating! I'm sorry it took so long, but there was studying for finals, then writing the finals, then getting my stuff together to move home for the summer, then moving home…let's just say it was a hectic few weeks. Anyways, right now I have nothing else to do, so updating my story shouldn't be much of a problem for awhile (at least until I start working…)

So here's chapter 12, and the long awaited (for at least some of you, I suppose, lol) confrontation between Inukigo and Sesshoumaru! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 12**

It wasn't long after that Inukigo and Shippou returned, with five skinned and gutted rabbits in tow. Inukigo handed off the rabbits to Sango to cook over the campfire, while Shippou ran to Kagome and Inuyasha and began enthusiastically telling the story of his first training session.

"I couldn't catch the rabbits, but Inukigo said that I did really good for a first try. Right, Inukigo?"

Inukigo nodded and smiled as she sat down beside Inuyasha.

"Yes, you did very well Shippou. A few more tracking lessons like that and you'll be ready for hunting in no time."

"Heh, not bad runt," Inuyasha said, ruffling the kit's hair.

Shippou beamed at Inuyasha's praise.

Inuyasha turned back to Inukigo, only she wasn't paying attention to them anymore. She was staring off at the horizon, a thoughtful frown on her face.

"Oi? Something wrong?" he asked, laying a hand on her shoulder to catch her attention.

Inukigo turned towards him.

"Huh? Oh, no, nothing's wrong."

Inuyasha wasn't particularly convinced.

"What was that look for then?"

Inukigo's brows furrowed. He wasn't giving up easily, was he?

"I was just thinking, that's all."

"Well whatever it was it seemed to be bothering you an awful lot," he paused, then his eyes narrowed in suspicion, "It's about that scrawny wolf, isn't it? I know you've snuck off to see him, if he's done anything-"

"NO!" Inukigo yelled, then paused, realizing her outburst, "No, it has nothing to do with Kouga," she sighed, then looked off towards the horizon.

"Then what?" Inuyasha asked, not taking his eyes off her. They had now drawn the attention of the rest of their companions.

Inukigo's brow furrowed in concentration.

"I'm not sure," she answered truthfully, "When I was out with Shippou I got this really weird feeling, like a shiver running up my spine," she paused before looking back at him, "It almost feels like…someone is coming."

One of Inuyasha's eyebrows arched in confusion.

"Someone's coming?"

"If that is the case, do you have any idea of who it could be that you're sensing, Inukigo?" Miroku asked, kneeling down close to the two siblings.

Inukigo looked at him and shook her head.

"I don't know who it is," she replied, "But I know that it can't be anyone good, that feeling was giving me the chills."

"Do you think it could be Naraku?" Kagome wondered out loud.

"It's a possibility," Sango offered, "But, then again, it's not often that Naraku himself comes to us. So who else could we be dealing with?"

"Hard to say," Inuyasha said, "We'll probably have to just wait and see. At least if anything does come, we have a heads up now."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and Kagome and Sango went back to preparing their meal while Inuyasha and Miroku kept discussing their previous topic, and Shippou and Kirara stuck close to Kagome and Sango. This left Inukigo to think by herself and she once again gazed off at the horizon.

'_Just wait and see, huh? I guess that's all that can be done. This feeling really bothers me though. I also have a hunch that we're going to meet up with whoever is causing it, really soon._'

* * *

'_She's close._'

Sesshoumaru tested the air again as he walked through the near pitch black forest.

'_She is with Inuyasha and his group. I wonder, how long has it been since she returned to him? And where is it that she has been all these years that I have been unable to locate her?_'

He continued walking, not in any particular hurry to reach his destination. It gave him more time to think on the situation. The thoughtful look on his face, coupled with his immense youki did wonders in ensuring that any youkai in the area gave him a very wide berth.

'_What will your reaction be to meeting with me again, Inukigo? Have you improved, since our last encounter?_'

As these and other thoughts went through Sesshoumaru's mind, a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. He had a feeling that this meeting would prove to be interesting.

Silently, he continued walking, drawing ever closer to the girl, whose happy smile still haunted his memories.

* * *

Inukigo sat in one of the low branches of a tree, distractedly watching as her human companions readied themselves for bed. Though she appeared to be looking over them intently, in reality her mind was wandering, unable to banish the thoughts that had been plaguing her all day.

'_Why am I so on edge? I don't think a simple feeling has ever bothered me so much before._'

She was so lost in thought that she never noticed Inuyasha join her on the tree branch.

"Hey," he called, catching her attention, "Go on and get some sleep like the others. It's my turn to be on watch."

Inukigo shook her head.

"No, I might as well keep watch. I won't be sleeping tonight anyway."

"That feeling you had earlier is still bothering you?" he asked, concern seeping into his voice.

"Yeah," she answered with a nod, "I don't know what's wrong with me. I can't shake it, and it's putting me on edge. You go ahead and sleep, I wouldn't be able to even if I tried."

Inuyasha nodded.

"Okay. Try to get some rest though, alright?"

"Okay," she answered.

Inuyasha jumped down from the tree and made his way over to Kagome's sleeping bag. The girl was halfway asleep when she heard the rustle of Inuyasha's fire-rat haori as he took it off and laid it on the ground. She rolled slightly, looking up at him.

"Inuyasha? I thought you were keeping watch tonight," as she was saying this, she was already lifting the side of the sleeping bag to let him crawl in. He slid in and spooned himself against her back, wrapping his arms and one of his legs around her.

"I was going to," he whispered in reply, "But Inukigo wanted to. She said that she wouldn't be able to get any sleep tonight anyway."

"Is she still worrying about that feeling she had earlier?" Kagome asked, turning her head towards him slightly.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied, burying his face in her hair, "She's really edgy right now. It's bothering her a lot."

"I wonder if there really is someone coming, and who it could be to be bothering her so much."

Inuyasha could smell worry seeping into Kagome's scent. He didn't like it, and decided to make it go away.

"There's nothing to do but wait and see," he whispered, then slowly slipped a hand under the hem of her nightshirt and began trailing it up her stomach.

"Inuyasha…" sighed out quietly, when she realized that his had wasn't stopping it's upward movement.

"What, Kagome?" he asked, puffing air against the side of her neck and back of her ear.

"Y-you shouldn't be doing that," she tried to protest.

"Shouldn't be doing what?" he asked innocently as his hand came in contact with the underside of one of her breasts.

Kagome gasped and Inuyasha smiled against her neck.

"Y-you know exactly what I'm talking about," she said lowly, trying to make it sound threatening but failing.

"I'm not sure that I do," he teased, moving his hand to completely palm her breast. Kagome gasped again and Inuyasha smirked when her heard her suppress a moan.

"Inuyasha, stop. Someone might notice…" she whispered, but Inuyasha could tell that she didn't really want him to stop. He flicked his ears before replying.

"Everyone's sleeping, so no one will notice. And Inukigo isn't paying any attention to us," he said, and began moving his hand, alternating between running his thumb over her nipple and squeezing her breast gently.

Kagome began squirming slightly, moving to press herself into his hand. Inuyasha's actions didn't surprise her anymore. Over the last two days, the sly, playful touches had not been few and far between. Ever since their last encounter in her room, he seemed to have grown bolder and more sure of himself, and had no problems with touching her as he was now, or experimenting to find out what she liked. Truthfully, Kagome didn't mind either, and was all to happy to let him explore…when they were alone. The thought of someone catching them had her utterly mortified.

Inuyasha could tell from Kagome's scent that she was feeling uneasy, despite how her body was reacting to his touches. While he was no longer shy about touching her, the prospect of someone catching them in the act didn't sit well with him either, and he conceded to her point. He removed his hand from her breast, but kept it under her shirt, resting it high on her abdomen. He heard Kagome sigh, and snuggled closer to her, pinning her against his body tightly. He kissed her lightly on the side of her neck, and Kagome turned her head enough to kiss his lips.

"Oyasumi, Inuyasha. Aishiteru," she whispered as she settled down to go to sleep.

Inuyasha smiled from behind her.

"Oyasumi."

'_I love you too, Kagome._'

* * *

The next day, Inuyasha found that Inukigo really had been unable to sleep at all the night before and was still feeling uneasy. By the time mid-day came around he had determined that she was way beyond uneasy, going straight to extremely paranoid.

Right now, she was running a little ways ahead of the rest of the group, and Inuyasha watched her with concern. She had gotten absolutely no rest the night before, and as he studied her he could see her ears twitching madly and her head darting from side to side as she scanned the forest around her. He guessed that her nose was working overtime as well. If this kept up he would have to force her to stop, or she would drive herself insane.

Kagome must have noticed his worry.

"Inuyasha? What's wrong?"

"Inukigo," he replied, not taking his eyes off his sister, "Something's really wrong with her. I've never seen her this wound up before. She's going to drive herself crazy if she doesn't calm down soon."

"Is that feeling she got yesterday really bothering her that much?" Kagome asked with concern.

"Yeah, and she didn't sleep at all last night, I can tell. That's just making it worse. Normally we can go for days without any sleep, but she's worn herself out with worry. Her exhaustion is just feeding her paranoia."

Kagome was about to respond when Miroku, Sango, and Shippou drifted down on Kirara.

"Inuyasha, is it just me, or does Inukigo seem to be…a little on edge?" Miroku asked.

"Keh, it's not just you," Inuyasha replied, "That feeling she got yesterday is making her paranoid."

"It was affecting her that badly?" Sango wondered.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied. Seeing that Inukigo had yet to calm down, he made his decision, "That's it. We're stopping before she drives herself nuts."

Up ahead of them, Inukigo's thoughts were far from the rest of the group, all her senses trained to the forest surrounding her.

'_I know that you're coming, and getting closer…I can feel you. But who the hell are you and why can't I smell you yet? Why don't you just show yourself already! I know that you're close!_'

Suddenly, a chill hit Inukigo and she froze in her tracks, staring off into the forest on her right. The rest of her companions hadn't anticipated it and continued on past her in their surprise before stopping a short distance away. They turned just as Inukigo caught the scent of her mystery person and he came rushing out of the trees straight at her.

"Sesshoumaru…"

Inuyasha's eyes widened and his face paled visibly at the sight of Sesshoumaru flying towards Inukigo, claws outstretched. Inukigo managed to avoid the strike, jumping of backwards into the trees on the opposite side of the trail with Sesshoumaru right behind her. It took a moment for Inuyasha to process what he had just seen.

"Oh, no…" he almost whispered as his brain finally kicked in and he took off in pursuit. Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara weren't far behind.

Kagome grew very worried as she sensed Inuyasha's panic. They had all learned of Sesshoumaru's dislike of Inukigo, and now they could very well witness it. She knew that was upsetting Inuyasha. She also knew that if this turned out to be like the last encounter Inukigo and Sesshoumaru had, he could end up killing her.

'_Kami, please don't let that happen. Even if Sesshoumaru's heart is bitter and cold, he couldn't possibly kill one of his siblings, could he?_'

Even as she was thinking this, she knew that he most likely could.

Inuyasha knew this as well, and that Sesshoumaru probably wouldn't hesitate to do so.

'_Hold on, Inukigo. Just don't die. Don't let him kill you._'

It seemed as though Inukigo had run from Sesshoumaru for quite a distance. Inuyasha was also relieved to find that she had dodged a number of his attacks. Scattered around were trees that had been completely sliced through, and others that were partially melted from Sesshoumaru's poison claws, but nowhere did Inuyasha smell Inukigo's blood. They broke into a large field moments later, where it appeared that Inukigo had decided to stop running and face Sesshoumaru head on.

Inuyasha paused and let Kagome down off his back, and Kirara landed so Sango, Miroku, and Shippou could get off beside them. Inuyasha was perfectly still as he watched Inukigo and Sesshoumaru battle.

Sesshoumaru had taken to using his youki whip to keep Inukigo at a distance, but she dodged most of them and managed to block the rest with her fire-rat covered arms, so she had yet to be injured. She knew she wouldn't be able to keep this up forever, and Sesshoumaru was waiting for just one strike to hit so he could close in on her while she was down.

'_Well, I'll just have to go at him first,_' she thought with a smirk.

She allowed him to strike at her a few more times as she came up with a plan. After studying his movements for a few minutes, she spotted her opening.

'_His left side. Without his arm, he won't be able to stop me if I attack from there at close range._'

With that thought in mind, she darted forward, dodging left and right as the whip came faster. She was forced to divert a few times, but Sesshoumaru never moved from his spot, so she didn't have to chase after him. This should have been her warning.

Just before she was in range, she darted right, towards Sesshoumaru's left side, confident that he wouldn't be able to counter if she was so close. She was wrong. As soon as she moved, so did Sesshoumaru. Her eyes widened for a split second as he drew his arm back and prepared to hit her. Inukigo yelped as Sesshoumaru backhanded her across the face and sent her skidding along the ground back the way she came. When she stopped, Sesshoumaru began to slowly walked towards her.

Inuyasha wasn't about to stand for this, and there was no way he was going to let Sesshoumaru do this to Inukigo. He had seen the results of this before, and he was determined to never see them again. Just as he was about to leap at Sesshoumaru, the stoic inu-youkai stopped and turned to look at him.

"You will not interfere Inuyasha. This fight is between she and I alone. It is not your place to be involved."

Inuyasha growled and clenched his fists as he glared at Sesshoumaru.

"Like Hell it's not! I will not stand by and watch this!"

"Make one move to interfere with this battle, and this Sesshoumaru will kill the half breed wench before you can take a breath."

"You bastard! I won't let you do this to her! You've done-"

"Inuyasha."

Inuyasha turned to look at Inukigo, who was now sitting up and wiping blood from her chin. She had bitten her lip when Sesshoumaru struck her, and was sporting a large red welt on her right cheek.

"Do as he says," she said in an emotionless voice as she stood up.

Inuyasha gaped at her for a moment before voicing his disagreement.

"You can't be serious!"

She levelled him with a cold glare.

"I am dead serious."

Inuyasha drew back slightly at her tone.

"But, Inukigo…"

"Dammit, Inuyasha, if you dare interfere with this fight, I swear to the gods that I will **_never _**forgive you. Do you understand me?"

Inuyasha suppressed a whimper just for the sake of not making the sound in front of Sesshoumaru, and stepped back as he nodded.

Inukigo seemed satisfied before turning to glare at Sesshoumaru.

"Now, who the Hell were you calling a 'half breed wench'?" she hissed.

The look on Sesshoumaru's face could have passed for a smirk.

"I would have thought that would be clear, even for a worthless hanyou like you."

Inukigo's eyes narrowed as she bared her fangs and snarled at him.

"Have you come to taunt me or fight with me, you arrogant bastard?"

"That should be obvious as well," he stated before he disappeared.

He appeared again in a flash just a few feet from Inukigo and dove at her. She managed to sidestep the strike, but Sesshoumaru was not deterred and kept coming at her. Inukigo was able to dodge him, but it was becoming harder. She was watching desperately for an opening to occur, but knew it would be unlikely. This was Sesshoumaru, not Inuyasha. He wouldn't get frustrated or overconfident and mess up. She knew this better than anyone, he had been the one to teach her how to fight in the first place, after all. When Sesshoumaru got too close for comfort and managed to nick her shoulder, Inukigo decided to make her own opening and lunged forward. She went for his left side again, but like before he anticipated it, and all she ended up doing was taking out his armour and leaving herself open. This was something Sesshoumaru took advantage of and delivered a swift kick to her middle, which sent her flying.

When she landed hard on her back she looked up at the sky for a moment.

'_Kouga kicks harder,_' she mused.

"I'm disappointed," she heard Sesshoumaru say and she sat up quickly only to find him standing over her, "I would have thought you would realize the flaw in that approach after the first try."

Inukigo glared up at him, wondering what he was trying to get at.

"You attempted to attack from my left, thinking that because I have no left arm that I would be open on that side, am I right?"

Inukigo didn't answer and he took it as confirmation.

"I have been without a left arm for nearly two years. Do you think that in that time, I would not have adapted? I knew that you would attack that side first, with the assumption that I would be defenceless from that direction. So I was able to compensate for it ahead of time. That you tried a second time truly astounds me. You are a bigger fool then I remember."

Inukigo felt stupid that she had not anticipated this, but she wasn't letting Sesshoumaru know that. Instead she just growled lowly before springing up and swiping at him with her claws. Sesshoumaru moved back a step and avoided the brunt of the hit, but she had managed to cleanly slice the front of his kimono and there was a nearly vertical gash running up his cheek. It didn't even faze him, and he had grabbed Inukigo around the throat before she could move. Her hand immediately went to his wrist, but his grip tightened and she flinched.

At the edge of the field, the rest of her companions watched on with concern, Shippou being close to tears. Kagome was trying to keep him calm, but beside her she could feel Inuyasha fidgeting. As she watched he would take a hesitant step forward then force himself to back up again. He never took his eyes off Inukigo and Sesshoumaru, and she didn't think she had ever seen him so distraught before.

She turned back to the fight again when she heard Inukigo yelp and saw the greenish glow around Sesshoumaru's hand and Inukigo's neck, signalling that he had begun using his poison claws. Inukigo punched at his arm before he could get too deep of a hold, and Sesshoumaru let go, but pulled back and punched her, on the left cheek this time, and Inukigo went sailing across the field again. As Sesshoumaru strode towards her slowly, Kagome turned back to Inuyasha with concern.

"Inuyasha, this has to stop! Inukigo can't beat him on her own. We have to do something!"

"Kagome-sama is right, Inuyasha. If we let this continue, Sesshoumaru will surely kill Inukigo. We should put a stop to this at once."

Sango nodded in agreement.

All eyes were on Inuyasha as he dropped his head, his bangs hiding his eyes from view. His hands were clenched so tightly that he had pierced the skin of his palms.

"No…we can't," he said, almost too quietly for anyone to hear.

"What? Are you out of your mind!" Sango yelled at him, "Sesshoumaru is going to seriously injure her, or worse if we don't do something!"

Inuyasha lifted his head and glared at her.

"Do you think that I don't know that? If we interfere it won't make any difference. Sesshoumaru will do as he said and kill her before we can even get close. Besides…she doesn't want the help."

"Be reasonable, Inuyasha. You would really let this fight continue and risk Inukigo's life because of that?" Miroku said.

"You don't understand!" Inuyasha yelled before turning away, "You don't understand. I want to help her, I want this to stop. I wanted to stop it before it ever began. But the way she looked at me when she told me not to interfere…Inukigo has never looked at me like that before. I have never seen her so serious or determined about something. She's trying to prove something, and as much as I don't want her fighting like this with Sesshoumaru, I won't stop her."

The group quieted and turned back to the fight, this time, Kagome grabbed onto Inuyasha's hand to comfort him, and she felt him squeeze back immediately.

Inukigo felt herself beginning to tire. She knew she should have more stamina than this, so something had to be wrong. She had thought that she prevented Sesshoumaru from injecting her with more than just a negligible amount of poison, but it appeared that she was wrong about that.

'_This is really not good. If this fight doesn't end soon, he really will kill me. Not that my odds were all that good to begin with, but they've just been getting worse the longer this has dragged on. But what can I do? Sesshoumaru doesn't leave any openings. He doesn't have any weak spots. I'm sorry, Inuyasha, but with the way things are going, I may not get out of this one._'

Her breath was coming in ragged pants, and she just managed to react in time when Sesshoumaru drew Tokijin, pulling Touitsaiga from it's sheath and transforming it to block the attack.

For a moment, Sesshoumaru looked mildly surprised.

"That sword, where did it come from?"

Inukigo smirked and kept her guard up.

"Heh, wouldn't you like to know."

Sesshoumaru frowned before forcing her away and striking at her with the sword's air pressure. Inukigo wasn't expecting an attack like that and barely defended her vital areas, but ended up with numerous gashes all along her arms and legs. Sesshoumaru didn't give her the opportunity to recover, and pushed her to the ground, leaning over her with Tokijin pressed against her throat.

"I will say it again, half breed. Where did that sword come from?"

The smirk was still firmly planted on Inukigo's face.

"It was hidden, within the Tessaiga," the grin on her face grew wider, "Why don't I show you what it can do?"

As soon as the words had left her mouth, Inukigo coiled her legs up against her body and kicked Sesshoumaru away, then rolled herself to her feet.

"Kaze no Kizu!"

The blades of energy rushed along the ground towards Sesshoumaru, but the inu-youkai easily stepped out of the way.

"How pitiful," he remarked, once the attack had dissipated, "You have the ability to unleash the power of the sword, but you are highly unskilled. The blast was slow and weak. Even Inuyasha wields the Tessaiga with more effectiveness than you do your own sword. What a waste of a good weapon. Then again, you always were a waste."

Inukigo growled and sheathed the Touitsaiga.

"I'll show you, who's the waste here, you bastard!"

Without really giving too much thought to what she was doing, Inukigo charged at Sesshoumaru head on with teeth and claws bared. Sesshoumaru stood there calmly, and sheathed his own sword as he waited for her to reach him. When she did she aimed straight for his face.

"Hikari shou Tessou!"

Sesshoumaru leaned back just enough to completely avoid the blow, then pressed forward quickly and delivered a powerful fist to Inukigo's unguarded stomach. Inukigo doubled over as the wind was knocked out of her, and cried out when Sesshoumaru promptly brought his elbow down against her back and sent her to the ground. He remained motionless while standing over her, and Inukigo lay there, waiting for whatever would come, because she knew now that there was no way she would be able to defeat him. When Sesshoumaru still hadn't moved after a few moments, Inukigo did something very stupid - she decided to goad him.

"What's the matter? I would have thought with me here, lying at your feet that you would take the opportunity to finish me off," she paused for a moment, then added with a smirk, "Aniue."

Sesshoumaru frowned, and without warning, delivered a swift, hard kick to Inukigo's side. She cried out and was sent flying across the field once again. When she landed, she sat up and winced as she put her hand to her injured side.

'_Oh, that definitely broke something._'

Inuyasha and the others watched worriedly as Sesshoumaru walked purposefully towards Inukigo. After that last hit, Inuyasha had realized something.

'_Inukigo knows that she can't win. Has she given up?_'

Inuyasha felt Kagome squeeze his hand, and looked down at her briefly. She wasn't looking at him, but the fight before her. Shippou was in her arms, and the kit was becoming more and more distraught as the fight wore on.

'_Inukigo, I don't know if I can keep my promise to not interfere. It's not just me that would be affected if you die here. I'd rather you be alive and hate my guts then dead._'

He turned his attention back to the fight just as Sesshoumaru reached Inukigo and lifted her off the ground by her neck. Inukigo winced slightly, since her neck was injured from the last time he grabbed her there.

Sesshoumaru looked Inukigo directly in the eye, his frown still in place.

"You have been told, to never refer to me in such a way. I have no sister, therefore you have no right to use that word when you speak to me."

Inukigo just smiled at him and answered in an annoyingly sweet voice.

"But Aniue, I'm right here in front of you. Don't you see me?"

Sesshoumaru's frown turned into a snarl and he threw Inukigo to the ground.

"All I see is a stubborn, worthless half breed whelp, whom I have had to deal with for far too long. I should have killed you long ago."

Inukigo stood up and wiped her mouth with a smirk on her face.

"Then why haven't you?" she taunted, "Is it because you can't bear to kill your own dear imouto?"

Sesshoumaru growled and backhanded her, sending her stumbling backwards but she didn't fall over. The smirk never wavered.

"I'm right aren't I? You just can't kill me, can you Aniue?"

She was silenced when Sesshoumaru's youki whip connected with her face, and this time did fall to the ground. But still the smirk remained in place.

"Did I strike a nerve, Aniue? Am I bringing up bad memories for you?"

Sesshoumaru didn't say a word, instead answering her with a strike from his whip, then another, and another…

Inuyasha forced himself to watch as Inukigo was beaten by Sesshoumaru's whip. She wasn't given the opportunity to get up, and it was all she could do to shield her head from the blows. Sango, Miroku, and Kagome were still watching as well, though Kagome was near tears. Shippou had given in to his and was now crying silently. Kagome had forced him to turn his face into his shoulder so he could no long see what was happening.

As Inuyasha watched the fight before him, the last time he found Inukigo after she had been attacked by Sesshoumaru came to mind. He realized that the wounds he had found on her at that time were the same as the one's that she was receiving from his whip right now.

'_Inukigo never did tell me exactly what happened with Sesshoumaru that time. This must have been it. She taunted him and Sesshoumaru beat her for it._'

Then the strikes stopped. Sesshoumaru stood perfectly still, staring at the bloody form of Inukigo lying on the ground. She didn't appear to be conscious, but Sesshoumaru could tell that she was.

"Do you yield, half breed?"

He heard a pained chuckle come from Inukigo's direction, and watched as she rose up onto her knees with shaky arms. Her head and face were the only places the she had managed to protect. Her clothes were in tatters and she was covered with gashes that were all bleeding steadily. She stared at him defiantly with a half smile on her face.

"I'll never yield to you, Sesshoumaru."

Sesshoumaru began walking towards her slowly.

"You accept your fate then, do you?"

Inukigo tried to laugh, but coughed and brought one arm to wrap around ribs as she stood up on wobbly legs.

"I accept whatever fate that you deal out to me, Sesshoumaru. But, that doesn't mean that I will ever give up!"

With one last burst of energy she charged at him, claws outstretched. Just as she was nearing him, she saw him pull his arm back to prepare to strike, only this time his hand wasn't clenched in a fist.

'_He's going to go straight through me,_' she realized.

Inukigo attempted to slow down so that she would be able to get out of the way, but found that she wouldn't be able to move in time. As she saw Sesshoumaru's claws fly towards her, she closed her eyes and braced herself for the hit, but it never came. She opened her eyes and saw that Sesshoumaru was directly in front of her, and a quick glance down revealed that his claws were just millimetres from her stomach.

'_What?_'

Sesshoumaru leaned towards her slightly before speaking.

"You, half breed, are not even worth dirtying this Sesshoumaru's claws."

Inukigo, looked at him in confusion, but never got the chance to ask him what he was talking about. Sesshoumaru flexed his hand, and before Inukigo could react he had blasted her stomach with his poison claws.

Inukigo's eyes widened and she screamed as she felt the poison and acid burn away at the flesh of her lower abdomen. Sesshoumaru backed away a few steps and Inukigo fell to the ground on her hands and knees. Blood, turned dark black from the poison, flowed freely from the wound, which was slowly getting bigger, and gathered in a large puddle on the ground beneath her. Inukigo took deep breaths in an attempt to steady herself to the pain, but she started coughing, then threw up a mouthful of blood.

Inuyasha looked on in horror, and the rest of the group mirrored his look. The tears had started flowing down Kagome's face, and she had brought one hand to cover her mouth in shock. Inuyasha had had enough. He didn't care if it would be a blow to Inukigo's pride, and he didn't care if she hated him for the rest of her life. He was not going to let her die. He looked to Kagome, Sango, and Miroku and gave them a nod. They understood and nodded back. Kagome left Shippou with Kirara, thinking that he probably wouldn't be able to handle seeing her right now.

Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku ran off first, and stopped between Sesshoumaru and Inukigo. Inuyasha was in front with the Tessaiga drawn and level with Sesshoumaru's chest, while Sango and Miroku stood just behind him. Kagome went for Inukigo, and knelt beside her, trying to calm the injured half demon.

"Inuyasha, I believe that you were told to not interfere with our battle," Sesshoumaru remarked coldly.

"Fuck that," Inuyasha hissed, "There's no way in Hell that I'm going to let you kill her."

"She has accepted her fate," Sesshoumaru answered, "She has no problem with me killing her."

"She might not, but I do! For me to just stand back and watch as you kill her…that makes me no better than you. I should have never let this go so far as it did."

Sesshoumaru took a step towards them.

"Do you really think that you can stop me? You will move or you shall share her fate."

Inuyasha never moved, and Sesshoumaru took another step forward, his hand on Tokijin.

"Stop it!"

Sesshoumaru looked past Inuyasha, Sango, and Miroku, to the miko that had called out to him.

"You dare order this Sesshoumaru?"

Kagome shook her head, tears streaming down her face.

"How could you do this to her?" she asked softly, almost too quietly for anyone to hear, "What did she ever do, to deserve this treatment from you?"

The expression on Sesshoumaru's face never changed.

"She is a half breed wench who refuses to learn her place. That is reason enough."

Kagome glared at him.

"Her place? You mean that she continues to call you her brother? How is she wrong in that? As much as you don't want to see it and deny it, you ARE her brother. She loved you when she was little, and despite everything you've done to her, she still loves you. You would punish her because of her feelings for you!"

Neither Sesshoumaru or Inukigo spoke at Kagome's words, but Inuyasha looked over his shoulder at her.

"Don't bother with him Kagome."

"But, Inuyasha…"

"It won't do any good. The bastard is too cold hearted to understand. He could never comprehend why Inukigo tries so hard to gain his acceptance," he turned back to Sesshoumaru, "I don't care what she thinks of me after this. I'll protect her from you no matter what."

Sesshoumaru showed no expression, but then surprised everyone. He turned and began walking away. Inuyasha's brows furrowed in confusion, and the Tessaiga dropped slightly.

"I will return in one week," he said without stopping or turning around.

Inuyasha was about to say something, but was interrupted by Kagome's cry.

"Inukigo-chan!"

Inuyasha whipped around and saw that his sister had begun shaking. Miroku, Sango, and Kagome were kneeling around her now and they all looked panicked. She started coughing and threw up blood again before collapsing onto her side. Inuyasha forgot all about Sesshoumaru and ran back to her side while sheathing the Tessaiga.

Inukigo was a horrible sight. She was covered in blood, and was very pale. She was shaking and hugging herself as though she were freezing, but Kagome put a hand to her forehead and said that she was burning up.

'_Sesshoumaru's poison,_' Inuyasha thought as he put a hand on Inukigo's face. He growled and looked up at Sesshoumaru, who had yet to disappear.

"Sesshoumaru!"

Said youkai stopped but did not turn around.

"I swear Sesshoumaru, if she dies, I'll be coming for your head!"

Sesshoumaru didn't answer, but continued on walking until he disappeared into the forest.

Inuyasha watched the spot where Sesshoumaru had been for a moment longer before turning his attention back to Inukigo. Her breathing was heavy and laboured, and when Inuyasha brushed her bangs back to feel her forehead, he was alarmed to find that her temperature was rising. He listened carefully and he grew even more worried when he found that her heartbeat wasn't as strong as it should be.

"This is really bad."

"Inuyasha?" Kagome said.

"Sesshoumaru's poison is spreading through her body," he looked down and saw that the wound that Sesshoumaru had inflicted was still expanding. It was a very slow process, but it was still getting bigger nonetheless, "That wound needs to be cleaned out first, or nothing else will matter."

Inuyasha took a few sniffs and when he found what he was looking for, he carefully hefted Inukigo into his arms.

"I'm gonna go on ahead with her," he then looked to Kagome, "You go on Kirara with Miroku and Sango. I can go faster if I don't have you with me."

Kagome nodded in understanding.

"Here," she said, digging the first aid kit out of her bag, "In case you need bandages and other things before we get there."

"Thanks," Inuyasha replied, then took off towards the smell of water.

Inukigo whimpered and squirmed in his arms, and he whispered his apologies to her before trying to smooth out his gait so she wouldn't be in so much pain.

"Inu-yasha."

Inuyasha looked down at his sister. He hadn't thought that she was conscious enough to speak.

"What is it?" he asked softly.

"I…I'm sorry…" she rasped out.

"Baka, what are you sorry for?" he asked affectionately.

"I-I didn't mean…that I wouldn't forgive you…if you interfered. Now you're worried about me. I'm sorry," she whined as she turned her face into his shoulder.

"It's okay," Inuyasha whispered.

'_Just hold on, Inukigo. Just don't die._'

* * *

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, sorry to have kept you waiting for so long. I'll try really hard to update a little faster next time!

**_FF . NET --_**

archerist

Skitzo - you're welcome, and I'm glad you like the pairing (next to Inuyasha/Kagome it's my favourite too. I can't wait to develop it more).

Pyrinsomniac - I'm glad you liked it. Hope you like this one too!

Patriot1776 - well, as you can see, here's the Inukigo and Sesshoumaru confrontation. Don't worry, Naraku will die in this fic, and it will be very much deserved (I actually hope that I can get to that as soon as possible, I hate writing scenes with him in it. I guess I'm bored with him or something. I'll probably have a few more scenes like that for him so we don't forget that he is the villain in this story, but nothing big until the final battle.

**_MM . ORG --_**

SilverShadowKitsune - haha, don't worry I'll have more limes later (and a lemon or two sometime in the future, lol). I'm not sure if the picture you're referring to is the one that goes with the last chapter, since I can't remember when I put it up, but it is on my site. It's the one where both Inukigo and Kouga are kneeling, and her hair is in all those little braids.

ninja-of-the-night - only one word this time…tsk, tsk, I expected more from you Karla…(lol, j/k)

Oh yeah, there was one more thing. I almost got nominated for the best action/adventure fic of the first quarter by the iy fan guild (technically I was nominated, but you need to be seconded in order to be eligible for voting, and I didn't get seconded). I was very surprised and very happy to even get this far, and I thank whoever it was who nominated me (unfortunately, I can't remember, but I'm gonna say thank you anyway!). I didn't get in this time, but oh well, there's always the next quarter!

Ja Ne!


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

Inuyasha made it to the lake he had smelled quicker then he thought he would. He attributed it to his rush to get Inukigo cleaned up and bandaged before her wounds got worse.

Inukigo's breathing was now far from normal, and though he didn't need to strain to hear it, her heartbeat was off as well.

Without much hesitation, Inuyasha set the first aid kit on the ground, then somehow managed to pull off his shirts without jarring her too much. Those were laid on the shore of the lake as well, his undershirt laid separately from his outer fire-rat kimono as to keep it clean. He figured that he'd need it for Inukigo afterwards.

He stepped into the water with Inukigo still in his arms and frowned.

'_Cold, but it'll have to do. The acid needs to come out of this wound now. They'll be cleaned out properly with hot water when Kagome and the others get here._'

It wasn't until he was waist deep in the water that Inukigo reacted to the cold water against her deeper wounds. As soon as it came into contact with her stomach, she yelled out and began thrashing around in his arms. Inuyasha had no problems holding on to her because she was so weak at the moment, but she was going to hurt herself if he didn't do something about it.

Shifting her around in his arms a little, Inuyasha was able to reach up and loosen the neck of her kimono enough for him to pull it down so he could latch his mouth onto the back of her neck. Inukigo stilled, but kept whimpering and crying out in pain. He slowly lowered her further so that the wound on her stomach was just below the surface of the water, and when he released her neck she was sobbing almost uncontrollably. Inuyasha nuzzled his cheek against her face and neck, trying to console her as much as he could. He had never seen her in so much pain before, and it worried him.

"Shh…I know it hurts. I'm sorry," he almost whimpered in his attempt to calm her. It had no effect, because it seemed that Inukigo was beyond the point of hearing him now.

Knowing there was probably only one thing that she would register right now, Inuyasha forced himself to calm down enough to generate a soothing rumbling deep in his chest. It worked somewhat, Inukigo stopped her heavy sobbing, but she was still crying and whining. It also seemed as though she could no longer speak, since Inuyasha realized that she had begun communicating in inu youkai.

:Hurts! Hurts:

Inuyasha looked at her sadly. He hated to see her in pain, but there was nothing he could do about it. The wound needed to be cleaned, and this was the quickest way to do it. The acid would not only keep the wound from healing, but it would also cause it to keep spreading. That needed to be stopped as quickly as possible. He grimaced as he looked down at the wound. Blood was still flowing steadily, and it was still far too dark. What was left of her kimono top obstructed his view of the wound so he couldn't accurately tell how large it was. Silently making his apologies, he freed the top from the waist of her hakama, undid the clasps, and pulled it off her as gently as possible before throwing it towards the shore in the general direction of his own clothes.

The thick bindings that had been wrapped around her torso were the next to go. The acid had pretty much destroyed them, so they were useless now anyway. Now that there were no barriers in his way, Inuyasha got a good look at the wound. He inwardly cringed. The injury itself was rather large, stretching about five or six inches across her stomach. In addition to that, the area about one inch all the way around the wound was burned to various degrees.

Inuyasha lifted Inukigo up out of the water slightly to inspect the wound more closely. It had appeared to stop spreading which was a good sign. Using one hand, he gently brushed his fingers over one of the burned areas of her abdomen. Apparently, it wasn't gentle enough. Inukigo _howled_. Flattening his ears against his head, he quickly grabbed onto the back of her neck again, effectively quieting her and stilling her before she could hurt herself further. He lowered her back down into the water again, listening to her whimper 'it hurts' over and over again.

:I know. Over soon.: he barked back, hoping that she would be coherent enough to understand.

She was, and managed to nod her head slightly and settle down. Inuyasha sighed, now that she was quiet he listened again for any changes in her body. Her breath was coming in rasps, but her heartbeat seemed to be the same. Putting a hand to her forehead, he found that her temperature had stopped rising, probably due to the cold water. Inuyasha's ears twitched as he heard the others getting closer. He checked over the whip marks on her back, and though they were raw and causing her pain they would heal rather quickly. Deciding that there wasn't anything else to be done in the water, he walked back towards the shore. Laying Inukigo down on a soft patch of grass, Inuyasha went back for the first aid kit and his under shirt, then quickly returned and draped the shirt over Inukigo's chest, leaving her wound exposed.

He sat down beside her, eyeing the injury critically. He wasn't happy to find that it was still bleeding almost black blood, though it wasn't flowing as rapidly as it had been earlier. He reached for the first aid kit, and pulled out a clean cloth to sop up the blood that was collecting in the wound. His hand hovered over Inukigo's stomach uncertainly. He had a pretty good idea of what was going to happen when he put the cloth directly on the wound, judging from what her reaction had been earlier when he had just touched the edge. He wasn't sure if he should attempt to do this on his own.

"Inukigo," he said, looking up at his sister, "Can you hear me?"

It took a few moments, but Inukigo nodded slightly, showing that she had managed to calm down enough to understand him.

"Okay, I'm going to clean up the blood in your wound now. Try to stay as still as you can so you don't hurt yourself, alright?"

Inukigo nodded again, and slowly lifted a hand to lay on his knee, trying to keep some contact with him. Taking a deep breath, Inuyasha prepared himself and carefully brought the cloth to Inukigo's stomach. She cried out in pain, and Inuyasha flinched when he felt her claws bite into his leg, but she didn't move.

"That's a good girl, just hold on a little bit longer," he said, trying to clean up the wound as quickly and gently as possible.

When he pulled away the blood-soaked cloth, he found that the blood flow had slowed even further, and sat back to give Inukigo a chance to recover.

"Inuyasha!"

Inuyasha looked over to see Kirara flying over the treetops, with everyone on her back. She landed, and Kagome was the first one off her back and running towards him.

"How is she?" she asked, coming to kneel beside him.

"Not too good," he replied, "But for the moment she isn't getting any worse," he then looked over to Sango and Miroku, "Can someone go get some wood? We need a fire for boiling water."

"I'll go," Miroku offered.

"Go with him Kirara," Sango said, "It'll be faster."

Miroku nodded, and both he and Kirara went off into the forest again.

"Is she still awake?" Sango asked, coming over to join them as well.

"I'm…awake," Inukigo replied hoarsely, though her eyes were still closed.

Inuyasha was surprised that she had been able to speak.

'_She must have adjusted to the pain._'

Kagome laid a hand on Inukigo's forehead, then got up and took a cloth from the first aid kit over to the lake and dipped it in the water. When she came back she knelt down and laid the cloth over Inukigo's forehead. Inukigo grunted and sighed.

"Thank you."

Kagome smiled.

"Don't mention it, Inukigo-chan."

Inukigo winced and sniffed.

"Where's Shippou?" she asked.

A sad look came across Kagome's face.

"He's really upset, I don't think he would be able to handle seeing you right now. He's behind that rock over there," Kagome said, pointing to the rock she was talking about.

"Where?" Inukigo asked, turning her head in Kagome's direction then opening her eyes to see where Kagome was indicating.

The moment they were open, Inukigo's eyes widened and her breath cut off in her throat.

"Inukigo?" Inuyasha asked, hearing the distressed sound that she made.

"Inuyasha…" she answered, sounding slightly scared, "I, I can't see."

"What?" Inuyasha said in shock.

He leaned over Inukigo's head and took her face in his hands, being careful of the cuts there. She seemed to stare right through him. Inuyasha stared hard into her eyes, and saw what looked like a cloudy film covering them. He waved one hand slowly back and forth in front of her face, but her eyes kept staring straight ahead.

"Damn it," he swore, releasing her face, "Sesshoumaru's poison."

'_At least her hearing and sense of smell don't seem to be affected._'

"Inuyasha…" she almost whined.

"It's okay," he replied, "Your eyes will heal once the poison is out of your system. Stay calm, okay?"

Inukigo nodded, though she still looked distraught from her current predicament. Kagome went to her bag and got her sleeping bag, as well as a spare blanket. By the time Inukigo had been situated on top of the sleeping bag, Miroku and Kirara had come back with firewood. They had the fire going and water over it to boil very quickly.

They were just about to tend to Inukigo's injuries when Kagome brought Inuyasha's head down so she could whisper in his ear.

"I'm worried about Shippou-chan. Why don't you and Miroku-sama go talk to him? Sango-chan and I can take care of Inukigo-chan."

Inuyasha looked like he was going to protest, but Kagome cut him off.

"I'll call you if we need your help, okay?"

Inuyasha relented, and motioned for Miroku to follow him to where Shippou had been hiding since they arrived. As the two of them came upon the rock, they could hear the occasional sniffles, and the scent of Shippou's tears became even stronger to Inuyasha. That's when something hit him.

'_Inukigo had to ask where Shippou was when he wasn't right next to her. I could smell him, but it didn't seem like she could. I could also hear him crying. She didn't show that she had heard him. Maybe her hearing and sense of smell have been affected by Sesshoumaru's poison._'

Inuyasha looked down at the kit before him. Shippou was a mess. It was easy to tell that he was beyond upset.

'_Poor kid. He really does care about her a lot._'

Miroku made the first move when Shippou showed no signs of stirring. He knelt down so he would be closer to Shippou's level before speaking.

"Shippou…"

The young youkai looked up at his companions that were standing before him, but when he spoke it was not to the one who had addressed him.

"Inuyasha…?"

Surprised that Shippou has chosen to speak to him, Inuyasha just grunted to signal that he was listening.

"Inuyasha…is Inukigo going to die?"

Inuyasha's eyes widened, before he growled and fisted his hands. He dropped to a crouch in front of Shippou, looking the kit straight in the eye.

"Hell no! Not as long as I have something to say about it!"

His confidence seemed comforting, and Shippou nodded.

"Is she going to be okay?"

Inuyasha's expression softened, and he sighed.

"Eventually. It'll probably be a while though."

Shippou lowered his head and nodded again. The information seemed to have calmed him, and he had stopped crying. Inwardly, Inuyasha was berating himself for lying.

'_It's better that I don't tell him, that I don't know if Inukigo is going to be okay. He won't be so upset if he believes that she's going to be alright._'

Taking a breath, Inuyasha set a frown on his face.

"Okay runt, no crying in front of her, got it?"

Shippou looked up at him in confusion, and he answered the question in the child's eyes.

"She's already worried about you. If she senses that you're upset over her, she'll be even more worried. Her being upset right now is a bad thing, she needs to be as calm as possible. Understand?"

Shippou looked at him for a moment before nodding with determination.

"Wakata."

Inuyasha gave a nod as well.

"Good."

He then surprised both Miroku and Shippou by picking the kit up, and holding him against his chest with one arm. Shippou looked up at him, but Inuyasha didn't look at the him directly, secretly embarrassed by his actions.

"You have to stay near her," Inuyasha explained, "Her senses are being affected by Sesshoumaru's poison, so she can't tell where you are. Being close will keep her from worrying."

Shippou didn't comment, and let Inuyasha carry him back to where Kagome and Sango were cleaning and bandaging Inukigo. Reaching the rest of the group Inuyasha knelt down and set Shippou down beside him, then was followed by Miroku. Kagome and Sango had finished patching Inukigo up as best they could, and Inuyasha wasn't surprised to see that she was no longer conscious. She didn't seem to be resting very comfortably, however, because her breathing was still heavily laboured and her eyes were scrunched up as if she were in pain.

"We did what we could," Kagome said, drawing his attention, "But I don't have anything to fight off Sesshoumaru's poison. Will her body be able to get rid of it on its own?"

Inuyasha's brows furrowed thoughtfully.

"I don't know. Neither of us has ever been hit with so much poison before."

"We should get her back to Kaede as quickly as possible," Sango pointed out.

Inuyasha nodded in agreement.

"Do you think that she'll have something strong enough to get rid of Sesshoumaru's poison?"

Everyone stopped for a moment to consider this.

"It may be safe to say that she does not," Miroku said, "I doubt she would have ever needed something that strong before."

All were silent once again.

"Jinenji would have something," Kagome said thoughtfully, "But that's in the opposite direction, and we need to get her back to the village. It's not a good idea to be moving around with her so much."

"I could fly to Jinenji's garden on Kirara," Sango offered, "It won't take as long that way, you can go ahead to the village and I'll meet up with you there."

"I'll go with Sango," Miroku said, "I would only slow Inuyasha down if he tries to get back to the village as quickly as possible. Is that alright with you, Sango?"

The taijya nodded, agreeing with him. Kagome looked to Inuyasha.

"Do you think you'll be able to run all the way back to Kaede's carrying the both of us? I can go with Sango and Miroku."

Inuyasha shook his head.

"It won't be a problem. I'll have to go a little slower than I normally would anyway, so I'll be able to manage it," he looked down at Shippou, "Who do you want to go with runt?"

Shippou looked down at Inukigo, then up at Inuyasha.

"Is it okay if I go with you?"

Inuyasha shrugged.

"If you want."

Shippou nodded and turned his attention back to the unconscious half demon lying in front of him.

Sango stood up and Miroku followed suit.

"We should get going now, and travel as far as we can before nightfall. We'll meet up with you back at Kaede's."

Kagome nodded.

"Okay. Be careful, Sango-chan, Miroku-sama."

Both nodded in acknowledgement, then climbed onto Kirara after she transformed and flew off in the direction of Jinenji's garden. Kagome watched them until they were out of sight, then turned to Inuyasha again.

"Should we get moving and cover some ground before it gets dark?"

Inuyasha looked like he was considering it for a moment, but looked at his sister and shook his head.

"No, we'll wait until morning. It would be better to let Inukigo recover as much as possible before we move her again."

"That sounds like a good idea," Kagome agreed, "We should probably set up camp somewhere else though. It might not be safe staying right next to a lake while we're trying to take care of Inukigo."

"Yeah, you're right. We'll stay here for a while longer though," Inuyasha replied.

He also wasn't thrilled at the prospect of a thirsty demon spotting Inukigo and deciding that she would make an easy meal.

To pass the time, Kagome went about washing the blood from Inuyasha and Inukigo's clothes in the lake, with the help of Shippou, while Inuyasha himself remained on guard for any demons in the area that might have come looking for a drink, or were attracted by the scent of Inukigo's blood. Luckily, none in the mood for a snack, or a fight, happened by.

Shortly before nightfall, Inuyasha decided it was time to move, and went about putting out the small fire that had been lit while Kagome got all their things together. When they were ready to leave, Inuyasha carefully wrapped the blanket around the still unconscious Inukigo and gently lifted her into his arms, leaving the sleeping bag for Kagome to carry. They then walked into the forest in search of a suitable area to rest for the night. It didn't take long for Inuyasha to find what he was searching for, and after a quick check to make sure there were no demons nearby, he laid Inukigo down and went to collect some wood for a fire.

Kagome went about tending to Inukigo while Shippou watched, wiping the sweat away from the hanyou's forehead. Checking her temperature, Kagome found that while Inukigo still had a very high fever that was causing a great deal of discomfort, it had levelled off for the time being. Kagome could only hope that it wouldn't go any higher, it was already dangerous as it was.

Kagome turned as she heard Inuyasha drop the armload of wood on the ground then dug into her pack and offered him the package of matches to get the fire going. He accepted them with a nod of his head, and quickly had a modest fire started. Once that was finished he stood up and brushed his hands off in his pants, then walked over and crouched down beside Kagome, Inukigo and Shippou.

"Any change?"

"Not much," Kagome answered, "She hasn't woken up at all, but her temperature stopped rising. It's really way too high though."

Inuyasha nodded.

"There aren't any demons around here, so I'm going to go find something to eat and get some water. I'll be back shortly," he said, kissing her lightly.

Kagome kissed him back then nodded when they broke apart.

"Okay, be careful."

Inuyasha nodded and stood, then collected the large cooking pot from Kagome's bag, as well as a few empty plastic bottles for water.

Kagome and Shippou sat quietly for some time, watching Inukigo as she slept, and occasionally Kagome would reach over and wipe away the sweat collecting on Inukigo's brow.

"Kagome," Shippou asked after a long period of silence, "Is Inukigo…really going to be okay? Inuyasha said that she would be, but what if Sango and Miroku don't find an herb strong enough to get rid of Sesshoumaru's poison, or what if they don't get back with it in time? Will she really be okay then?"

Kagome smiled at Shippou reassuringly.

"It's better not to think about things like that Shippou-chan. We have to believe in Sango-chan and Miroku-sama, and believe that Inukigo will be alright in the end. It's the only thing we can do right now, along with helping Inukigo ourselves, okay?"

Shippou nodded to show that he understood, and the two drifted back into silence. A short time later, Inuyasha returned with the pot full of water, as well as two rabbits and a ground bird, already prepared for cooking. He laid everything down near the fire, then produced a handful of water bottles from the inside of his haori.

"Any problems while I was gone?"

"No, not a thing," Kagome replied, shaking her head. She moved over to where Inuyasha was getting ready to cook their meal, "You go ahead and take a turn watching Inukigo-chan. I'll take care of this, okay?"

Inuyasha smiled at her gratefully and nodded before taking up Kagome's previous position. He looked down at his restlessly sleeping sister, taking in her irregular breathing and heartbeat as well as the grimace of pain that still marred her face. Inuyasha sighed. It was shaping up to be one long night.

_

* * *

Inukigo stood unmoving just outside of a small, slightly rundown hut. Staring at the small structure, she couldn't help but contemplate how it looked both welcoming and foreboding at the same time._

She knew this place, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember why or from where.

The very air around her was thick with something dangerous, that Inukigo couldn't quite place, but behind her she could feel an intense heat, as though there was a raging fire at her back, and she could hear the fading screams of dieing villagers.

She then heard the distinct beat of horses' hooves pounding against the hard packed earth of the path leading to the hut, as well as the laughs of men, drawing ever closer.

Then suddenly, her perspective changed, and she was now inside the hut, standing beside the door and watching the events that played out within. A beautiful woman dressed in a plain kimono, with long, straight hair as black as pitch, was huddled over her two children; a boy and a girl, both of which had fair hair and small canine ears perched upon their heads.

'**I know this…**' Inukigo thought as she stood there, unable to move.

"Hahaue," she heard the little girl whimper, "What's happening?"

"Do not worry," she heard the woman say softly, a false smile on her face meant to comfort her children, "Everything will be fine."

"But Hahaue," the little boy spoke up, while trying to hide the waver in his voice, "I can smell smoke, and I hear the villagers screaming," he paused for a moment, his ears twitching, "And there are horses coming this way, they're almost here."

The woman's eyes widened slightly.

"They're coming here?" she said, mostly to herself.

She sat there for a few moments, then a fierce look of determination that one would only see on a mother defending her children came to her face and she stood, moving quickly to the back of the hut. As her children and Inukigo watched, she moved about a few large jars, then pulled up the floorboards, revealing a hidden cellar beneath the hut. As she called her children to her side, Inukigo's eyes widened as she finally recognized the scene.

'**No! Not this! I don't want to see this again!**'

"Now listen carefully," she heard the woman whisper, "I need the both of you to hide here. Be silent, and do not come out until the danger has passed, no matter what. Do you understand?"

The children looked like they were about to protest, but the look on the woman's face stopped them.

"No arguing now. Do as I say, quickly!"

Both children reluctantly crawled down into the cellar, which was just big enough for the two of them, and cast frightened glances up at their mother, who smiled down at them warmly, but sadly.

"Hahaue?" the little boy questioned, the fear now very evident in his voice.

"Now remember," she admonished, "Make not a sound, and do not come out until it is safe," her eyes then grew watery with unshed tears, "Never forget, Inuyasha, Inukigo, that I love you both with all my heart. Please, be safe, and take care of each other," a few tears slipped down her cheeks as she whispered her final words to them, "Goodbye, my little ones, I'm so sorry."

Without hesitation, she replaced the floorboards, despite her children's stricken faces, and placed the large clay pots back over the hidden cellar, knowing that her children would be strong enough to escape afterwards. Just as she was finishing, and she reached up to wipe the tears from her face, the horses stopped outside, and the voices of men could be heard just before they broke into the small hut.

Inukigo remained standing in her spot, unable to move, and unable to close her eyes. The scene before her split into two, and she could now see the young forms of both herself and Inuyasha, huddled together in the cellar as they heard what she saw; her mother being beaten, raped, then slaughtered by the handful of leering bandits who had happened to discover their hut.

She remembered it all. She'd seen it too many times to count. The images were the most horrible and terrifying that her mind could have possibly come up with, and now they tortured her.

'**No! No! No!**' she chanted over and over again in her mind, still unable to do anything.

'**Stop it! Stop it! Stop hurting my mother!**'

She felt tears trailing down her face, but she could still do nothing but stare at the scene before her, desperately wanting to wake up from her nightmare.

'**NO!**'

* * *

"Kuso!" Inuyasha swore as he grasped Inukigo's shoulders, trying to keep the sleeping hanyou from thrashing around and hurting herself.

It was well into the night, and he had stayed awake, keeping watch over Inukigo, Kagome and Shippou. He had begun to think that it would be an uneventful night, but it proved too good to be true, when a few minutes before, Inukigo had started whimpering in her sleep.

Inuyasha berated himself for not reacting sooner. He should have realized what was about to happen when he heard her first sounds of distress, but he hadn't, and now it was turning out to be worse than any nightmare she had ever had in the past. She usually woke up before this point, but this time it seemed as though she was unable to escape the nightmare.

"No…Stop…Don't hurt…mother…" he heard her mumble out in her sleep. She had never talked during one of her nightmares before, and although he knew what she dreamt of, it tore at him to hear her crying out.

He was surprised when he saw the tears streaming steadily down her face. She had never cried during or after one of her nightmares in the past. He was now growing very worried, and though he didn't want to, it seemed as though the only option was to wake her up.

"NO!"

Inuyasha cursed inwardly as her struggles renewed at the scream, and tried for all he was worth to hold her down without hurting her.

"Inuyasha?" he heard Kagome's worried voice growing closer, "What's wrong?"

Inuyasha looked over his shoulder to see Kagome and Shippou, who had both been undoubtedly awaken by Inukigo's scream, coming towards him with concerned looks on their faces.

"Inukigo's having one of her nightmares," Inuyasha explained quickly before turning his attention back to his sister.

Kagome thought about it for a moment, then a cry of 'mother' from Inukigo made it clear.

"She's having one of her nightmares of when your mother died?" she asked, worry clear in her voice.

Shippou sat there, slightly confused because this was the first he had heard of these nightmares. He didn't ask about them though, thinking that it definitely wasn't the time to bring it up.

"I have to try to wake her up," Inuyasha explained, "It's never been this bad before, and she's going to hurt herself if this keeps up."

Kagome nodded, but inwardly she was curious. She didn't know how Inuyasha's mother had died, but from Inukigo's unconscious ramblings, she could guess that her death had been anything but natural. She put her curiosity aside, intent on helping her future mate and sister-in-law.

"Is there anything I can do?"

Inuyasha looked over his sister and thought for a moment.

"Can you get me some water and a cloth for her face? If it comes to it, I'll dump the water over her head to wake her up."

Kagome nodded and went to get what he asked for, and while she was gone Inuyasha managed to manoeuvre the slightly struggling Inukigo so that she was reclined against his chest. He made the soothing growl deep in his chest, and was surprised when for the first time ever, it had no effect on her. Giving up on that idea, he resorted to shaking her gently and calling her name.

"Inukigo, wake up. C'mon, wake up, Inukigo."

Either he wasn't shaking her hard enough, or she was really too deep into sleep that she wasn't registering it. Inuyasha tried shaking her a little harder, but kept from jarring her too forcefully for fear of hurting her.

Kagome returned with the cloth and a blow of water, then went about wiping the sweat and tears from the female hanyou's face. That too seemed to have little or no effect on her condition.

Inuyasha's worry finally got the better of him, and he had had enough. Momentarily forgetting about hurting Inukigo slightly, he shook her roughly, yelling her name.

"Inukigo!"

Inukigo came awake with a start…or at least she thought she was awake. She felt as though she were in a vacuum, or a void. She could see nothing but darkness, and wasn't sure whether or not her eyes were open. She knew she was no longer dreaming, because the scenes before her had abruptly stopped, but now where was she? Not only could she not see, but there was also no sound or smell to this place. However, she could feel that she was partially sitting up, and there was a warm, breathing body behind her, so that must mean that she was awake. She then remembered that she had been rendered blind by Sesshoumaru's poison, so that explained the darkness, but then what was wrong with her hearing and sense of smell?

Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippou all remained motionless when Inukigo jerked in Inuyasha's arms. They were not sure that she was awake, but both Inuyasha and Shippou confirmed that her breathing and heartbeat had picked up slightly, signalling her to be very much awake. But there was something very wrong going on. Inukigo's eyes came open, still unseeing, and after a few moments of being perfectly still, Inuyasha could smell the distinct smell of fear and anxiety flowing from her. A look to Shippou confirmed that he smelled it as well and was just as confused as he was.

"Ooi, Inukigo, what are you afraid of?"

The three became even more confused when Inukigo gave no reply, just sat there very quietly.

"Inukigo?" Inuyasha asked again. Again, he received no response.

"What's going on?" he asked, looking at Kagome.

"I-I don't know," Kagome said, watching Inukigo worriedly. Then a look of conviction crossed her face and she reached over and snapped her fingers very close to Inukigo's ear. Inuyasha's ears twitched towards the sound, but Inukigo's remained motionless. Kagome lowered her hand again.

"Earlier, you said that her hearing and sense of smell were dulled, right?" she asked, looking up at Inuyasha.

"Yeah," he answered with a nod, "Why?"

"I think that maybe they're gone completely now, like her eyesight," Kagome explained with a frown.

Inuyasha's eyes widened. No wonder Inukigo was frightened. To a dog demon, hearing and smell where the most important of the senses. To have just one or the other would have been fine, but to have neither while her eyesight was impaired as well would be far worse then what either of them dealt with while they were human. Inukigo was probably completely cut off and had no idea where she was or who she was with.

Being careful to not open any of her wounds, Inuyasha lifted her up more fully against his chest and began to emit a deep, soothing rumbling once again. He sighed with relief when this time she responded immediately and leaned against him, resting her head against his shoulder. All the tenseness that had in her body previously left as though it had never been there in the first place, and a contented noise from the back of her throat told him that she had gotten the message and was now as relaxed as she could be, given that the majority of her senses were impaired.

Kagome and Shippou each sighed with relief as well.

"Well, she seems as though she's more comfortable now," Kagome commented, then rested her hand against Inukigo's forehead. Inukigo started from the unexpected touch, but relaxed again after a moment, "Her fever is still very high though. It probably won't break until she's given something for the poison."

Inuyasha nodded in agreement.

"There haven't been any other changes in her body since you fell asleep, but she's still in pain. I can smell it from her. The smell of the poison is still very strong on her as well, but it seems like her body is fighting it. There's not much difference, but the scent is a little weaker then it was earlier."

"So…she's really going to be okay then?" Shippou asked quietly.

Inuyasha sent him a tolerating look.

"I told you that she'd be alright from the start, didn't I? It'll be better if she has the herbs to help her along, but she'll be fine eventually anyway."

"That's right, Shippou-chan," Kagome added with a smile, "Inukigo-chan will be fine on her own, we just have to help her out and keep her comfortable while her body fights off the poison."

Shippou accepted their reasoning, and was calmed greatly. Seeing the change in body language, Kagome smiled at him warmly once again.

"Why don't you go back to sleep Shippou-chan? It'll be morning soon, and we'll be heading to Kaede-bachan's village early."

Shippou looked hesitant for a moment, but complied and yawned widely as he made his way back to where he and Kagome had been sleeping. He had barely touched the blanket before he was once again fast asleep, showing just how tired the young kit had been.

Kagome remained by Inuyasha's side, and dipped the cloth she was holding in the small bowl of water before wringing it out and carefully wiping Inukigo's face. The hanyou grunted as the cool cloth passed over her heated skin, then sighed and smiled gratefully to her caretaker. Exhausted from her nightmare, and the shock of her waking, Inukigo slowly drifted off into a much more restful sleep.

"She's sleeping again," Inuyasha relayed when he sensed that she was fully unconscious.

Kagome nodded, putting down the bowl and cloth. She fidgeted with her pajama top for a moment, before speaking hesitantly.

"Inuyasha, I'm not sure if this is really a good time to be asking this, but, what happened to your mother?"

Inuyasha's eyes widened as he looked at her, then dropped down to look at his sister in his arms.

"She…she was killed, by bandits that attacked our hut."

Kagome gasped, and remembering the words that Inukigo had spoken during her nightmare her next question left her in a whisper.

"D-did you see it happen?"

Inuyasha shook his head.

"No, we didn't see it. But we heard it. Inukigo explained to me that in her nightmares, her mind has created pictures to go with the sounds we heard," he paused for a moment, then seemed to have trouble speaking, "Kagome, can we not talk about this right now?"

Kagome realized that he wasn't comfortable talking about his mother's death and let the subject drop right there.

"Are you going to keep her in your arms like that?" she asked.

Inuyasha sighed, grateful that she had let him be.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied, "She'll probably rest easier if she can sense me so near, and I'll be able to tell if she's upset or anything. You should go back to sleep too, we've got a long day tomorrow."

"Okay," Kagome confirmed, then leaned up and kissed him lightly. Inuyasha returned it, and she pulled back, smiling, "You make sure to get some rest too. Don't forget, you'll be the one doing all the work tomorrow."

"Keh!" he huffed, though there was no heat behind it, "I'll be fine. I don't need as much sleep as a human."

"Inuyasha…" Kagome said in a warning tone, though the half smile on her face showed that she had caught on to his bantering.

Inuyasha grinned back at her.

"Don't worry, I'll get some rest. Promise."

Kagome smiled at him and pecked him on the cheek. He seemed a little disappointed, but Kagome just giggled at him.

"Goodnight, Inuyasha," she said as she leaned back, then quickly pecked him on the lips before he could respond, "Aishiteru."

Inuyasha smiled as she made her way back to bed.

"Goodnight, Kagome."

Shortly thereafter, all members of the small group were fast asleep.

* * *

Early the next morning, the small group was well on their way towards the village.

They made good time, stopping only when it was absolutely necessary, and made it to the village just before the sun set. It was perfect timing too it seemed, because no sooner had they reached the village and entered Kaede's hut had Inuyasha's demon blood waned and he became human. Apparently, in all the commotion, they had all forgotten that it was the night of the new moon. Needless to say, Inuyasha was not a happy camper.

Kaede had immediately tended to Inukigo, but unfortunately there was little she could do outside of what had already been done.

While she did have some herbs that were useful against poisons, she had none strong enough to fight off Sesshoumaru's poison. She did use the strongest that she had however, making it into a poultice and applying it to Inukigo's wound. While it wouldn't be able to draw out the poison completely, it would help her body along while they waited for Miroku and Sango, and the herbs from Jinenji's garden.

There was, however, nothing to be done for the pain Inukigo suffered from her injury and the poison coursing through her body. The wound was healing very slowly, and as a result her stomach couldn't handle anything they gave her. They discovered this when they had her drink a pain-killer tea that Keade had made for her. They attempted it twice, and both times were met with the same result - Inukigo emptying her stomach contents wherever they happened to aim her. So, despite the uneasiness caused by seeing her in pain, there was nothing they could do but make her as comfortable as possible as she dealt with it.

Around noon the next day, Miroku and Sango arrived, along with a week's supply of very potent herbs that Jinenji guaranteed would be able to stand up to the poison of a youkai of Sesshoumaru's calibre. Kaede quickly readied the new herbs and applied them, and within a few hours, they had begun to take effect.

It was the next morning when things really started to look up. Much to everyone's relief, especially Inukigo's, her senses began to return. They were still very muddled at first, causing her to be extremely disoriented, but they improved bit by bit and when evening came her eyesight had cleared considerably, and her senses of smell and hearing were only slightly dulled. By the next morning, they were completely back to normal.

It was a good thing too, for later they had an unexpected - though he should have been expected - visitor.

It was midmorning, and the only people currently occupying Kaede's hut was the miko herself, and the hanyou siblings. Kagome was currently in her own time, and while Inuyasha had spent the night with her (which had taken some coaxing on Inukigo's part, because he seemed reluctant to leave while she was still injured), he had returned a few hours earlier after she had left for school. Miroku and Sango were out milling about the village, and Shippou had left the hut at sometime as well. Inuyasha found this surprising, because the kit had been stuck to Inukigo like glue as soon as she had been declared recovered enough for him to do so.

With most of the group members absent, the hut was peacefully quiet.

Kaede was in the far corner of the hut, grinding herbs that would be made into a poultice to apply to Inukigo's wounds when they would change her bandages in a few hours. Inuyasha was sitting beside the door with his back to the wall, his eyes closed and his ears trained to all sounds both inside and outside the hut. Inukigo was blissfully unaware of all the going-ons around her, as she was currently sleeping peacefully near the wall farthest from the door.

Inuyasha was close to dozing off when an unmistakable smell found it's way to his nose. In an instant he was fully awake and standing.

"Dammit," he cursed to himself.

"Inuyasha?" Kaede asked from the corner of the hut.

"That damn wolf is coming," he replied without turning around. He lifted the covering of the door and prepared to step out, "I'm gonna go stop him before he comes barging in here."

Inuyasha was barely outside the hut when Kouga's whirlwind came into view. It was only seconds later that it reached him and dissipated, revealing a frantic looking wolf demon.

"Where is she?"

Inuyasha raised one eyebrow in confusion.

"Where's who?"

Kouga growled in frustration.

"Your sister, Inukuro! Where is she?"

"She's in the hut. Wha-whoa, wait a second!" he called out, stopping Kouga as he made to pass him and go straight into the hut, "What's your problem?"

Kouga growled again, clearly not happy at being kept from where he wanted to be.

"I'll tell you what my problem is! My problem, is that I went to check on my pack a few days ago, and when I caught up with your trail again yesterday, I found a field that was covered with Inukigo's blood. Now you won't let me see if she's alright!"

"Stop being so loud, dumbass," Inuyasha said, a frown marring his face, "Inukigo's fine. She's sleeping right now, that's why I didn't want you barging in there and waking her up."

Kouga calmed down slightly at Inuyasha's words, and decided that it would be wise to stay outside for now.

"What happened?"

Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head, and he looked away slightly.

"We…ran into our brother, Sesshoumaru," Kouga nodded, remembering who the youkai was, "We don't get along, and he hates Inukigo more then he does me. She got in a fight with him…he beat her up pretty badly, and poisoned her too. She's doing okay now though."

Kouga's eyes widened as he heard what had happened to the woman he was courting. They quickly narrowed in a glare and his mouth twisted into a snarl.

"Why weren't you there?"

Inuyasha flinched, which didn't go unnoticed by Kouga.

"Why the hell weren't you there to keep her from getting hurt so badly!"

Inuyasha didn't look Kouga in the eye.

"I was there," he replied in monotone.

Kouga began to growl deeply and threateningly.

"What! You were there, and you **_let _**her get hurt! What the hell were you thinking!"

Inuyasha still didn't look up and replied in the same tone of voice.

"I had my reasons."

Enraged, Kouga grabbed Inuyasha by the front of his robes and pulled him close to his face. Inuyasha barely reacted.

"What reasons could you possibly have that would justify ignoring your sister's safety!"

"That is enough."

Both Kouga and Inuyasha turned their heads to regard Kaede, who was standing in the doorway of her hut, looking very unimpressed.

"Young man," she spoke evenly, addressing Kouga, "While I am aware that you are concerned for the well-being of the young woman in my home, I remind you that she is recovering from grave injuries and requires rest. I am the healer of this village, and I warn you that I shall not allow you to disturb my patient. As it is, you have already woken her from her sleep. She wishes to see you, but be forewarned - if I have to speak to you once more about your inappropriate behaviour, you shall be asked, if not forced, to leave immediately. Do I make myself clear?"

Kouga nodded, keeping his eyes on the commanding old woman standing in the doorway.

"Very well," Kaede replied, "Now release Inuyasha, and I shall allow you to enter."

Kouga did as he was told, promptly releasing the hold he had on Inuyasha's robes, and walked towards the doorway of the hut. Kaede moved aside to allow him to pass, and he lifted the door covering out of his way before entering. Inuyasha had followed behind him and stopped beside Kaede, who was smiling at him knowingly.

"You have grown much, Inuyasha."

"What's that supposed to mean, Kaede-baba?" he asked in an annoyed tone.

"I had been expecting you to fight back. I was surprised to see that you held your temper."

"Keh," Inuyasha snorted, lifting his nose to the air, "I got more brains then that scrawny wolf. I didn't want to wake Inukigo up, not that it matters since he did anyway."

Inuyasha neglected to mention that the main reason had been that Kouga had struck a nerve with his accusations.

Inside the hut, Kouga had quickly made his way over to a smiling Inukigo, who was sitting with her back to the wall. He wasted no time in kneeling on the floor beside her and grasping her hands in his. Inukigo was surprised by his actions, but didn't get the chance to question him about it.

"Inukigo, are you okay?"

Inukigo's eyes widened slightly at his frantic tone.

"Yeah, mostly," she replied carefully, "All of the wounds have healed except for the worst one, and there's still a little poison in my body, but other than that I'm fine."

"Thank the gods," Kouga breathed, stress evident in his voice.

Before Inukigo could react Kouga had carefully crushed her against his chest in a strong hug. He hands pressed against his chest between them, and her chin rested against her shoulder. A light flush spread across her face, which then deepened considerably when she saw that Inuyasha and Kaede were once again standing inside the hut and watching them. Kaede was smiling at her knowingly, but Inuyasha didn't look very happy, though he didn't say anything.

"I was so worried," she heard Kouga whisper.

"Eh?" Inukigo questioned, turning her head slightly towards him.

Kouga didn't move or release her as he explained.

"When I found that field yesterday, there was so much blood all over the place…and all of it was yours. I didn't know if you were dead or alive, I was so worried."

"Kouga…" Inukigo whispered, then snuggled up against him more fully, "I'm sorry that you worried about me so much…It's okay now, I'm alright."

Kouga nodded against her head and kept his arms around her.

"Kouga," Inukigo spoke up, "I heard you outside. Please, don't blame Inuyasha for this."

"Why shouldn't I?" Kouga growled, throwing a glare over his shoulder at Inuyasha, who was leaning against the wall beside the door impassively, "He was there and he just let you get hurt. It shouldn't have happened."

"You don't understand," Inukigo sighed, pulling back from him slightly, "The reason that Inuyasha didn't stop the fight between me and Sesshoumaru, was because I told him not to."

"What?" Kouga gasped, grabbing her shoulders, "You wanted to fight Sesshoumaru on your own? What the hell were you thinking?"

"I had my reasons," Inukigo replied, looking away from him.

"They had better be fucking good reasons," Kouga growled.

Inukigo looked up and glared at him.

"Don't be so overbearing," she almost growled, "I am not your intended, nor am I your mate, so you have no right."

That knocked Kouga down a few pegs, and he released Inukigo completely as he moved away from her. Inukigo felt slightly guilty for being so harsh with him, but he was really going too far.

"Kouga, I'm sorry, but you have to understand. My reasons are personal, and I'm not ready to share them with you. Someday, perhaps, but not now."

Kouga nodded in understanding, but was still put out.

Inukigo smiled warmly.

"Arigatou, Kouga, for being concerned about me."

Kouga looked up and smiled as well when he saw the reassuring look on her face. Inukigo tried to hide a yawn behind her hand, but Kouga saw it immediately. Ignoring Inukigo's slight protests he managed to get her to lie down again and pulled the blanket up to cover her.

"Get some rest. I'm sorry I disturbed you earlier."

Inukigo smiled at him again, and despite her attempts to stay awake she was asleep again within moments. Kouga remained by her side, watching her as he slept.

Inuyasha remained at his post by the door of the hut, keeping a close eye on Kouga and Inukigo. He hadn't liked how familiar Kouga was acting with his sister, but she handled him well enough on her own, and though he wasn't very comfortable being in such close quarters with the wolf demon, he allowed him to stay. Inuyasha knew that Inukigo was happy to see Kouga, and he could understand the other male's concern. If he had come across the field the way Kouga had, he would have been alarmed as well. So he left the two alone, and went about dwelling on other things to occupy his mind.

The first and foremost thought was of Sesshoumaru. He had said that he would be returning in one week, but hadn't given a reason as to why. This had Inuyasha nervous. That gave them about four days before the inu-youkai appeared, and he had no idea what would happen then. He could only hope that Inukigo would be fully recovered by that time, so she would be able to defend herself if Sesshoumaru decided to attack her again.

Though this time it would be different, Inuyasha vowed to himself as he glanced at Inukigo and Kouga from the corner of his eye. Never again, would he allow Sesshoumaru to hurt Inukigo they way that he had in the past. The next time, he would protect her, no matter what.

* * *

Ah, I managed to put this one out pretty quickly (for me anyway). The next chapter is about half finished, I'll have it out as soon as possible. Thanks for everyone who reviewed, and here are the responses!****

MM . ORG --

A Joy Faery - Thanks so much, I really appreciate that. It's great to know that I'm developing the characters well. Sometimes I worry that people will think I'm going too far out of character, so it's good to hear.

SilverShadowKitsune - Well, as you can see, she didn't die! Yea!

Sesshoumarusgirl - Thanks! Hope that you didn't go too crazy while waiting for this one, lol.

ninja-of-the-night - haha, funnnnny…..well, as you can see, Kouga-kun's back in the plot line! (He'll be here for the next chapter too, lol).

****

FF . NET --

Patriot1776 - Did I really make you hate Sesshoumaru that much? Uh, well, just so there's no confusion, I really like Sesshy, so he won't be a real bad guy. And yeah, Inukigo acted really stupid (very impulsive, ne?). I wouldn't say that she's accident prone, per say…more like injury prone, lol. Neat idea about the end of Naraku, I'll keep it in mind.

Skitzo - Yeah, I know I need to give Inukigo a break with the injuries. I'll lay off her for awhile. About Kikyou…well…for those who don't know, I don't really like her. So basically, I'll have her involved as little as possible. She'll come in and make an impact sometime near the end (I just don't want to write much involving her).

Pyrinsomniac - Aww…thank you! You had so many nice things to say! XD Well, as you can see, I had Kouga find out rather quickly (I just couldn't resist having him show up, lol). I'm sorry it was such a mean cliffhanger, did I get this one out soon enough for those cookies? lol


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The day went by very slowly for Inuyasha. Not only was he bored out of his mind, but he also had to put up with Kouga hanging around watching Inukigo. They had woken her up again to change her bandages, and Inuyasha had taken great delight in kicking the wolf demon out of the hut, but unfortunately that had pretty much been his only entertainment.

Around noon, Miroku, Sango, Shippou, and Kirara arrived for their lunch, and were surprised to see Kouga sitting at Inukigo's side. They dealt with his presence far better than Inuyasha did, Miroku and Sango striking up conversation while Shippou and Kirara ignored him completely.

Shippou had once again become stuck to Inukigo like glue, hovering over her and making sure she was comfortable, asking if she needed anything, and keeping her entertained when she didn't feel like conversing with the rest of the group. Shortly after lunch, which Inukigo had none of because her stomach still wasn't healed enough, she fell asleep once again, her body being worn out from the massive amount of healing it was undertaking. Shippou and Kirara curled up with her and went to sleep as well.

And this was the scene in the hut, even now. Inukigo, Shippou, and Kirara sleeping by the far wall, Miroku, Sango, and Kouga talking amongst themselves, Kaede in the corner preparing medicines, and Inuyasha sitting by the door stubbornly ignoring the lot of them but bored out of his freakin' mind.

As it was nearing evening, Inuyasha grew restless. It was getting close to the time that Kagome came home from school, and he wanted to be there when she returned. His dilemma, however, was that he wasn't sure if he liked the idea of leaving Kouga here with his sister while he was away.

Inukigo was now awake, as were Shippou and Kirara, and she was now talking with Kouga. Everyone else was still in the hut, so Inuyasha thought that it should be okay to leave while the wolf was still there. Standing up, he stretched then called out to the rest of the huts occupants.

"Ooi, I'm gonna go and check up on Kagome. I'll be back later," then he fixed his eyes on Kouga, "You had better not cause any trouble while I'm gone, wimpy wolf."

Kouga glared at Inuyasha and growled, but said nothing and turned back to continue talking with Inukigo. Inuyasha was surprised that Kouga hadn't said something back, but didn't dwell on it and left the hut. He took off in a sprint towards the well and wasted no time in jumping into it's depths. The magic took hold of him immediately, and in a few moments he was standing at the bottom of the well in Kagome's time. He was out in one leap, and made for the door of the well house. Taking a tentative sniff from the shrine courtyard, he determined that neither Kagome or her brother were presently at home, her grandfather was somewhere outside on the other side of the shrine, and Mrs. Higurashi was somewhere in the house. Since he wasn't in any hurry, and there was no one else on the shrine grounds, Inuyasha took his time walking to the house.

He found Mrs. Higurashi in the living room, sitting at the low table while watching television and drinking a cup of tea. Having heard him open and close the sliding door, she wasn't surprised by his appearance and smiled at him warmly.

"Konnichiwa, Inuyasha. I wasn't expecting you back so soon."

Inuyasha shrugged and walked over to join her at the table.

"It got boring over there, so I decided to come here and wait for Kagome."

"I see," Mrs. Higurashi replied, taking a sip of her tea, "How is your sister? Is she recovering well?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"Yeah, she's doing okay. She isn't fully healed yet, but she probably will be in a few more days," then a frown crossed his face, "She has a _visitor _right now," he practically hissed the word out.

"Visitor?" Mrs. Higurashi asked, "Who might that be?"

Inuyasha refrained from growling, remembering that it was Kagome's mother that he was talking to.

"A wolf demon, named Kouga."

"Ahh, I remember Kagome mentioning him before."

"She has?" Inuyasha asked, not sure if he liked that fact.

"Yes," Mrs. Higurashi replied, "She said that there was a young man named Kouga, who thought that he was in love with her, and that every time your group would run in to him, he would make you very jealous."

Inuyasha blushed and sputtered.

"K-Keh! As if! I was never jealous of that stupid wolf," he said, crossing his arms across his chest and turning up his nose.

"Inuyasha…" Mrs. Higurashi chided.

Inuyasha glanced over at her from the corners of his eyes, to see her smiling at him in amusement. He looked away again, though not denying anything this time.

"You know, before we were married, Kagome's father used to get very jealous whenever men would pay attention to me."

Inuyasha's ears perked and he turned to face her, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Really?"

"Mm hmm," she replied, sipping on her tea, "One day we had a big fight because a man that I knew was flirting with me. Kagome's father saw it, and accused me of flirting with him as well."

Inuyasha's eyes widened. This sounded very much like their past situations with Kouga.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Well…" she said, a smile on her face, "We apologized to each other, made up, and he asked me to marry him."

Inuyasha nodded in acknowledgement before speaking again.

"Kouga doesn't want Kagome anymore," he explained, "Now he's taken interest in Inukigo."

"I see," Mrs. Higurashi, "Does this bother you?"

Inuyasha's brows furrowed as he tried to explain.

"Kind of," he admitted, "It makes her happy that Kouga wants to court her, so I won't deny her that, but I just don't trust him. Wolf demons…are a little different from dog demons when it comes to courting."

"What do you mean?"

Inuyasha looked at Kagome's mother more fully, though he was slightly embarrassed, having this conversation with her.

"Well…while wolf demons will take a life mate like dog demons, and stay with that mate until one of them dies, they aren't…monogamous before that. It's common for wolf demons to have…rutting partners…if they feel the need for them."

Inuyasha was worried about how Kagome's mother would respond to having a conversation like this with him, but she took it all in stride.

"You're worried that he may be using her?"

Inuyasha ears perked in surprise from how quickly she had figured it out.

"Yeah," he replied, nodding, "Kouga doesn't really seem like someone who would do that, but none of us really know anything about him when it comes to that, so we can't say for sure."

Mrs. Higurashi nodded in understanding, her face thoughtful.

"Does Inukigo know of your concerns?"

"She does," he confirmed, "She says that she can take care of herself, and I know that she can, but I don't want her to be hurt that way if it turns out that Kouga is using her."

"I hope that he isn't, for Inukigo's sake."

Inuyasha grunted in response. As much as he didn't like Kouga, he would not interfere. Inukigo liked him, and she was happy that he was interested in her. He could only hope that Inukigo wouldn't end up being hurt in the end.

"Tadaima!"

Inuyasha and Mrs. Higurashi turned toward where the voice had originated from. Mrs. Higurashi smiled and called back.

"Okaeri! We're in the living room, Kagome!"

"We? Who else is here? Oh! Inuyasha," Kagome beamed as she entered the living room. She dropped her back pack on the floor and gave him a quick peck on the cheek as she knelt beside him. Now used to the little displays of affection, he didn't grow embarrassed, even though her mother was sitting just across from them on the other side of the small table. The older woman just smiled before standing up and excusing herself from the room, saying something about getting started with dinner.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, "You didn't stay here all day by yourself, did you?"

"Iie," he replied, shaking his head, "I left right after you did. I only came back a little while ago to see if you were home."

"Oh. How's Inukigo-chan doing?" she asked.

"Better. She's sleeping a lot because all the healing her body is doing is wearing her out. She should be completely healed in a few days."

"That's good," she then noticed the frown on his face, "Inuyasha, is something wrong?"

Inuyasha shifted uncomfortably.

"Kouga's there," he grumbled.

"He is? Really?"

Inuyasha just nodded.

"Aww, that's so cute. He came to see her," Kagome giggled.

"Keh. He came because he found the field where she fought with Sesshoumaru."

Kagome's smile immediately vanished.

"He knows about the fight then?" Inuyasha nodded, "He must have been so worried."

"Yeah, he was," Inuyasha replied, leaving out how Kouga had blamed him for Inukigo's injuries. She already knew how guilty he felt about letting it happen.

"He seems to really care about her," Kagome said, almost to herself.

"Yeah, seems to," Inuyasha answered, offhandedly.

Kagome frowned at him.

"You still don't believe that's he's sincere, do you?"

"I never said that," he replied defensively.

"You didn't have to," Kagome shot back, then sighed, "Is it so hard for you to believe that he really could like Inukigo-chan that way?"

"It's not like that and you know it," he almost growled.

Kagome sent him a look that said he wasn't proving himself and he sighed heavily.

"Kagome, I've explained to you how wolf demons go about courting. If Kouga only wants her for a rutting partner-"

"Inukigo-chan would never agree to be just that for him," Kagome pointed out, cutting him off.

"I know that she wouldn't," he replied, growing irritated, "But she likes him, and if that's all he wants her for, it will hurt her. I don't want her to be hurt that way."

Kagome backed off, having seen the point he was trying to make and nodded.

"Okay, I get what you're saying. But you should still put a little more faith in Kouga. He's not such a bad guy you know."

Inuyasha huffed but didn't say anything in return.

"You know…you should trust Kouga a little more, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha scoffed and nearly laughed out loud at her suggestion.

"No, I don't think I will. If you don't mind, can we stop talking about that stupid wolf?"

Kagome sighed and shook her head. Fighting with him over this was a lost cause and she should have known that from the beginning. There was no use in wasting her breath on it any longer, so she decided to change the subject.

"Have there been any rumours of Naraku or Shikon shards going around?"

Inuyasha frowned and nodded.

"There are a few about shards going around, which points to Naraku, but nothing about Naraku himself. It's like he disappeared again, just like before. We won't be going anywhere for a few days though, not until Inukigo's fully recovered."

Kagome nodded, then smirked as an idea came to mind.

"Does that mean I can stay here in my time for a few extra days?"

Inuyasha was taken aback by her question, and though he wanted her to come back to his time with him, there wasn't really much she could do there right now. Therefore, he didn't have much of an argument to get her to go.

"If you want. There won't really be anything to do until we can travel again."

Kagome smiled, having seen the look on his face.

"I'm kidding Inuyasha. I want to go to school tomorrow, but then it's the weekend, so I'll go back to the feudal era with you. But I want to come back here again before we leave, so I can stock up on supplies."

Inuyasha perked up and nodded his head.

"Okay."

Kagome smiled then shifted closer so that she was leaning against him. Inuyasha's hand rested gently on her waist as he leaned his head against hers, nuzzling her hair.

"How was school?" he asked quietly.

"Not too bad," she replied, relaxing against him, "I have a lot of assignments and a few tests to make up for though, and the teachers are giving me a lot of stuff in advance. They don't know when I'll be back again, so they're piling it all on me at once," she said with a sigh.

"Sounds like you'll have a lot of work to do," he commented, inwardly unhappy that she would be so busy with school work, but not saying anything because he had given up complaining about it.

"Yeah, but it's okay. I'll try to get as much done as I can while we wait for Inukigo-chan to heal. That way I won't have to take so much with me while we travel. The hard part will be when I start studying for final exams, but then school will be over and I've done well enough that I won't have to take any classes over the summer. Then I'll have a few months to spend in the feudal era without having to worry about things here, before school starts up again in the fall."

"Hmm…I'll be looking forward to that," he said, pausing before he continued talking, "I hope Naraku will be defeated by then."

Kagome looked up at him curiously.

"Why do you say that?"

Inuyasha chuckled and grinned at her slyly.

"Because, woman," he replied, leaning in close to her ear and whispering hoarsely, "I want to make you my mate."

Kagome's reaction was one of the funniest things he had even seen. She shivered and blushed simultaneously from his breath on her ear and his words, then started stuttering uncontrollably. He was hard pressed not to laugh at her obvious embarrassment.

"Inuyasha," she breathed, once she got herself mostly under control, "Do you have to talk about that here? Where my mother, jii-chan, or Souta could hear you?"

"What difference does it make?" he asked, "They know that you and I are to be mates, and I'm not going to deny that I want to make you my mate," he then grinned at her again, "Besides, it's getting harder and harder to remember to wait."

"Inuyasha!" she hissed as the colour flooded her face once again, "Since when did you get so bold! You're turning into a pervert!"

Inuyasha snickered at her expense.

"And to think, we haven't even mated yet," he pulled her closer, nuzzling the skin behind her ear with his nose, "I wonder how bold I'll be once we do."

Kagome groaned and hid her face.

"Oh Kami, I'm doomed."

Inuyasha enjoyed laughing at her discomfort, but inside he was just as nervous or even more so than she was. While he was fairly comfortable with the present level of their relationship, he was rather anxious about what would happen when they did become mates. He knew that his instincts would guide him through the motions when the time came, but his fear was that his instincts would have him doing something that Kagome wouldn't like, or worse, that would hurt her. These thoughts were often on his mind, but he pushed them aside, resolving himself to focus on the present and worry about the future when the time came to take her as his mate.

After taking a few moments to regain her dignity, Kagome sighed and looked up at him.

"Are you going to stay for dinner?"

Inuyasha looked thoughtful for a moment then nodded.

"Yeah, I'll stay, but I'm gonna check on Inukigo right after, then come back here for the night. That wolf had better not be causing trouble."

Kagome laughed.

"I'm sure everything is fine over there. There are plenty of people there to keep Kouga in line."

"Keh!" Inuyasha replied, knowing that she was humouring him.

Kagome hid her grin behind her hand, knowing that it would probably shape up to be a very entertaining evening.

* * *

"Kouga, will you stop fussing! I'm fine!"

"No you're not! Stop thinking that you can hide it from me. I know that you're still injured and I can tell that you're tired, so will you just stop fighting already!"

"You're treating me like a child! Despite what you might think, I **_can _**walk!"

"You're hurt and tired! You shouldn't have to!"

"I **_want _**to! Back off, dumbass!"

"Well I **_want _**to help you, baka onna!"

Sango, Miroku, and Shippou watched cautiously as the demon and hanyou bickered outside of Keade's hut.

"Those two are a lot like Kagome and Inuyasha when they fight, aren't they?" Shippou commented.

"I have to agree with you Shippou. The resemblance is actually quite frightening," Miroku replied.

Sango just nodded in agreement as the three companions watched Kouga trying to help Inukigo, who was obviously exhausted, back to Kade's hut. A few moments ago, Inukigo had expressed that she needed to relieve herself. She had said that she was perfectly capable of going on her own, buy Kouga had protested and decided that he would escort her. Inukigo had flamed red with embarrassment and flat out refused his offer, saying that if he really felt that someone should go with her, she would rather it be Sango. Kouga would have none of it, and in the end Inukigo agreed with him, lest she have an accident in the hut. It seemed that Kouga had wanted to carry her, but Inukigo wouldn't let him, thus they had argued the whole way there, and were now arguing the whole way back.

"Ha! See, woman? I told you that you were too tired," Kouga admonished.

"Grrr…Shut up."

It seemed as though Kouga had gotten the last laugh, because Inukigo's legs had given out and she was sitting in the middle of the path, still quite a distance from Kaede's hut.

Kouga sighed and settled into a crouch to manoeuvre Inukigo so he could lift her into his arms. She no longer fought him, just crossed her arms and looked away with a stubborn expression on her face. Once he was standing he tried to get her to look at him, but she wouldn't comply, causing Kouga to sigh again and begin walking towards the hut.

"Why couldn't you just let me carry you from the start?" he asked quietly, too low for their audience near the door of the hut to hear.

Inukigo gave him no reply, just kept looking away with her arms crossed stubbornly.

Kouga looked at her sadly.

"Why can't you just let me help you?" he then lowered his voice further, grumbling to himself, "I have so few opportunities to prove myself to you, and when I do find one you won't even let me."

That caught Inukigo's attention and she turned her head to face him. It had never occurred to her that that was his reasoning behind wanting to help her. He had wanted to prove himself as a good mate, and she just went and threw it in his face.

"Kouga, I…gomen," she said, lowering her gaze submissively.

Kouga raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Huh?"

"I-I'm sorry that I didn't see it that way," she looked up at him again, her eyes slightly sad, "You are proving yourself to me."

"I don't see how," Kouga said, stopping in the middle of the path, "You haven't needed me to provide for you, when you need protection I'm not there, and now that I find something to help you with, you're denying me."

"You are," Inukigo stated firmly. She then reached up and stroked his cheek lightly with her hand, "I know that you're trying, and that's all the proof I really need. It shows me that you will provide for me, protect me, and help me if you're given the chance."

Kouga smiled and leaned a little bit into her hand.

"Do you really mean that?"

Inukigo returned the smile and nodded.

"Thank you," he replied softly, turning his head to kiss her palm.

Inukigo's hand slid from his face down to wrap around neck, and was joined by her other one so she could pull her self up slightly and rest the side of her face against his collar bone.

"Can you take me back to the hut, please? I'm tired," she finally admitted.

Kouga smirked, but said nothing and nodded against her head as he continued walking towards the hut.

"Now that's the difference between their fights, and Kagome-chan and Inuyasha's," Sango said as they watched Inukigo hugging Kouga around his neck.

"Yeah," Shippou commented, "Kouga can manage to get out the real reason behind why he's upset, and Inukigo is forced to listen to him because she can't 'sit' him like Kagome does to Inuyasha."

Miroku and Sango nodded, and even Kirara gave a little 'mew' of agreement. The group quieted as Kouga finally walked by them and into Kaede's hut with Inukigo still in his arms.

"Inuyasha will probably be back soon," Miroku commented absently, "I wonder what his reaction will be when he finds that Kouga is still here."

Kouga heard what Miroku had said, but gave no indication that he had. He didn't really care what Inuyasha thought of him being there, because there was no way that he was going to leave until Inukigo was fully recovered. He hadn't been there to protect her from her brother, and though she had told him that even if he had been there she would have told him not to interfere, he still felt guilty about not being there. At least he could be here now, and help her out while she was recovering.

Inukigo had fallen asleep in his arms, so he carefully laid her down on the futon and pulled the blanket up to her chin. He allowed himself a moment to watch her as she slept, and before he realized what he was doing, he was reaching forward and smoothing some of Inukigo's hair back from her face. Inukigo sighed and rolled over, but didn't wake up. Kouga removed his hand, then stood up and moved to sit down against the wall beside Inukigo's feet. He looked down at his hand, then glanced back up at Inukigo's sleeping figure.

'_I'm gonna need to talk to Inuyasha before I leave._'

"Ah, so you are still here, ookami-san?"

Kouga looked up at Kaede, who had just entered the hut with a basket of vegetables in her hands. What she had said was more a statement than a question, so he didn't bother replying.

"I was just about to start the evening meal. Will you be staying?"

Kouga nodded.

"Yes. I will be staying until Inukigo is fully healed."

Kaede chuckled and turned to look at him.

"You are quite vigilant, young man," she commented, "Though I doubt her brother will take that news well."

"Like I care," Kouga snorted, "Whether he likes it or not is his problem. I'm staying."

"I can see why she speaks so highly of you."

"Eh?" Kouga said, surprised.

"She talks about you often with Kagome and Sango, and has many nice things to say about you. I even once heard her defend you from Inuyasha."

Kouga blushed and looked away.

'_Did…did she really do all that?_'

"I believe that it is safe to say, you have gained her favour, ookami-san."

Kaede didn't speak again, and went about preparing the meal while Kouga stared at the floor of the hut.

'_Okay, I definitely have to talk to Inuyasha before I leave._'

* * *

Inuyasha arrived back in the Feudal era shortly after dinner, and was irked to find that Kouga was still in the hut with Inukigo. His mood only got worse when he discovered that Kouga planned on staying for the remainder of Inukigo's recovery. He wanted to argue, and he wanted to pick a fight and force Kouga to leave, but Inukigo seemed happier because of Kouga's presence. So for the sake of his sister, Inuyasha held his tongue and allowed Kouga to stay.

Inuyasha had been surprised when Shippou told him about the incident that had occurred earlier when Inukigo had needed to use the bathroom. He knew all to well that Inukigo could be very stubborn when she wanted to be when it came to accepting help. He was the same way. What had shocked him was Inukigo's reaction after she had been forced to accept Kouga's help, and that she had admitted that she was tired afterwards. Being able to handle his sister gave Inuyasha a new respect for Kouga, not that he would admit it to anyone.

A short time later, Inuyasha did return to the Modern era through the well, but not before having a few minor arguments, then telling Miroku and Sango to keep an eye on Kouga while he was gone.

He returned to the past a bit later the next morning, and to his surprise, found Kaede's hut completely empty. Everyone's scents went off towards the village, so he headed in that direction. He found Kaede, Shippou, Miroku, and Sango milling about in the village, but Inukigo and Kouga were no where to be found. Inuyasha followed their scents further, finding that the led out of the village and towards one of the rivers used for bathing.

He spotted them shortly afterwards, finding that he was downwind, so they wouldn't know he was there until they heard him. Using this to his advantage he crept closer, being very careful not to make a sound and give himself away. His original intention was to sneak up on the two of them and break them apart, but once he got close enough to see their position, he stopped short.

Inukigo and Kouga were sitting side by side with their backs to him, staring out over the river. Inukigo was tucked up against Kouga's side with her head on his shoulder, and his arm had wrapped around her waist. He could tell that they were speaking to each other, but the whispers were too low for him to make anything out. Seeing how comfortable they looked together, Inuyasha lost his resolve to interrupt them and quietly left in the direction he had come.

Upon returning to the village, Inuyasha found the rest of his companions on their way back to Kaede's hut and hurried to join them. Shippou heard him approaching, and the others turned to follow his gaze, all of them seemingly surprised to see him.

"Inuyasha," Sango spoke, "Ano, didn't you find Inukigo and Kouga?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"Yeah, I found them."

The slight widening of their eyes gave away what they were thinking.

"I left them alone, if that's what you're wondering."

"You did?" Shippou asked, not even attempting to mask his surprise.

Inuyasha frowned in irritation.

"Yeah, I did. Is there something wrong with that?"

The three of them shook their heads before Sango spoke again.

"No, there's nothing wrong. It's just that, when we saw the two of them sitting like that, we weren't sure what your reaction would be."

"Keh!" Inuyasha replied, "They're comfortable where they are, and I'm not going to deny Inukigo her happiness," he then paused for a moment, looking away slightly, "They're getting to be really close to one another. Kouga will probably ask to mark her soon."

Thinking back on what had happened when he and Kagome had marked each other, Inuyasha wasn't too sure that he liked that idea. But then he realised that Kouga would have to ask someone else before he asked Inukigo, and a smirk broke out on his face. The look confused the three that were standing before him.

"Inuyasha, why are you smiling?" Miroku asked.

"Oh, just that Kouga needs to have permission before he can ask Inukigo about marking her."

Miroku and Sango still weren't sure what he was talking about, but Shippou's eyes widened.

"Kouga has to ask you first?"

Inuyasha's grin grew wider while the others balked at him.

"Inuyasha," Sango said warily, "You wouldn't say no just because you don't like Kouga, would you?"

Inuyasha snorted.

"Of course not. I wouldn't do that to Inukigo. Besides, Kouga has proven that he could be a good mate for her. He's putting in a lot of effort to take care of her, and from his reaction yesterday, I'm sure that he would protect her with his life. And he can handle her attitude. If he came and asked me if he could mark Inukigo, I would say yes," his smirk then turned mischievous, "Not that I wouldn't have some fun messing with his head first."

"You're taking way too much enjoyment from this," Shippou commented from Miroku's shoulder.

Inuyasha shrugged and continued walking on towards Kaede's hut with the others behind him.

Later that evening, Kagome joined the rest of the shard hunters in the Feudal era, and they all settled in for a nice vacation while they waited for Inukigo to heal.

* * *

The next two days went by fairly quickly, and were greatly amusing for Kagome, Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Inukigo. Watching Inuyasha and Kouga argue proved to be great entertainment, as did watching them try to ignore each other. While it did make for a few good laughs, Inukigo and Kagome were both grateful that it never turned into anything violent.

Inukigo was now pretty much completely healed. All the poison was now out of her system, and the only thing left of the injury was a small scar. No one was more relieved than Inukigo herself, because Kouga and Inuyasha had finally stopped fussing over her.

However, Inuyasha now had other worries. The one week that Sesshoumaru had set was now up, and the inu-youkai would probably be showing up any time now. Inuyasha was concerned about what would happen when Sesshoumaru decided to arrive, as was everyone else in the group. Kouga refused to leave once he had discovered that Sesshoumaru would be making a visit, just in case he decided to attack Inukigo again. Inukigo was tired of arguing with him about his protectiveness, so she just left him alone.

The group decided that they would start out on their next shard hunt, so when Sesshoumaru appeared the village wouldn't be in danger if a fight broke out. So, after Kagome went back to her time for a few hours to stock up on supplies, the group set out, and was joined by Kouga, much to Inuyasha's dismay.

"Why did that damn wolf have to come along?" Inuyasha grumbled to himself as he ran.

"You know he's worried about Inukigo-chan, just like you are. Just leave it alone, okay? It's only until Sesshoumaru shows up, and then he'll leave. You can live with him for that long, can't you?" Kagome said from her place on his back.

Inuyasha grunted, but still wasn't too happy about the situation. He glanced ahead to where Inukigo and Kouga were running side by side. He sighed, knowing that he wouldn't force Kouga to leave anyway, but no one else needed to know that.

They had been running for a good portion of the morning before Inukigo suddenly stopped, forcing everyone else to stop as well.

"Inukigo? What's wrong?" Inuyasha asked as he let Kagome down from his back.

Inukigo glanced around at the forest around them, a thoughtful frown on her face.

"I'm not sure. I…I think Sesshoumaru is coming. I'm getting that weird feeling like I did before…but it's…different this time."

"Different how?"

"It's not an ominous feeling like before, like there's no danger. I just know that Sesshoumaru is coming."

Everyone remained silent, watching the forest around them cautiously. Inuyasha and Kouga were the most alert, waiting anxiously for when they would be able to pick up on Sesshoumaru's approach. A few minutes later, the inu-youkai himself glided out of the forest, having approached from downwind. Hurrying along behind him were Rin and Jaken. Inukigo recognized the imp youkai, but had never seen the girl before, and assumed that she was the girl she had smelled with Sesshoumaru a few weeks ago. That he brought the two of them with him had her puzzled. There was no way that he would bring such a young girl with him if he was planning on starting a fight, would he?

Sesshoumaru looked her way, and just as she was about to speak to him, two bodies, specifically Inuyasha and Kouga, effectively blocked her view. Sesshoumaru's eyebrow arched almost unnoticeably as he watched the display. Inuyasha's reaction he could understand, but he had no idea why the wolf youkai was acting in such a way.

"There is no need to be so defensive. I have not come to fight, I only wish to speak with Inukigo."

"Yeah right, bastard. Like I'm gonna believe that," Inuyasha snorted as both he and Kouga dropped into fighting stances.

Inukigo scowled at the backs of her living shields and growled in irritation.

"Will the two of you quit it. He said that he only wanted to talk to me, so the two of you can move out of the way now."

Inuyasha turned around to look at her over his shoulder.

"You actually believe him?"

Inukigo sighed and stood up straighter, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Of course I do. You know Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha. He doesn't lie. If he comes to fight, he doesn't tell you, he just fights. If he comes to talk, he just talks."

Inuyasha frowned thoughtfully and found that Inukigo was right. He relaxed his stance and moved to stand behind her instead of shielding her. Kouga however, was a little harder to move.

"Kouga, it's fine. He's not going to fight with me," Inukigo said, laying a hand on his shoulder.

"You sure?"

"Positive."

Kouga nodded and moved to stand behind her as well.

Inukigo took a deep breath and stepped forward to stand before Sesshoumaru, never once breaking eye contact with him.

"Was there something that you wanted from me, Sesshoumaru?"

The stoic inu-youkai nodded.

"I would like to speak with you, privately."

To everyone's surprise, Inukigo agreed and began to follow Sesshoumaru as he walked off the trail. Inuyasha was quick to react and called after them.

"Now wait just a minute! You never said anything about wanting to take her away and speak with her in private. I don't like the idea of her being alone with you without anyone to defend her."

Inukigo glared at him with irritation. He made it sound like she couldn't take care of herself at all. Though it was true that she never fared well in battles with Sesshoumaru, that was from her own weakness. No matter what Sesshoumaru did to her, she could not bring herself to fight with him whole-heartedly or do him serious harm.

Sesshoumaru seemed to consider Inuyasha's words then turned away from the group once again.

"You may join us, if you wish Inuyasha. What I have to say applies to you as well."

Inuyasha hesitated for a moment before nodding and stepping forward to follow them. He glanced at Kagome, and taking note of her worried look, sent her a reassuring smile before he walked off into the forest.

Once Sesshoumaru felt that they were a reasonable distance away from the rest of the group, he stopped and turned to look down at his two hanyou siblings. For the first time in their lives, Inuyasha and Inukigo saw a clear look of uncertainty on his face. They looked at each other before Inukigo set her eyes on Sesshoumaru again and took a step forward.

"Sesshoumaru…?"

Sesshoumaru looked away, surprising both Inuyasha and Inukigo by being the first one to break eye contact. After a few moments, he finally broke the silence.

"I have found that during my life, there are a number of things that I have done that I have…regretted."

He paused, leaving both Inukigo and Inuyasha watching him in confusion, but anxious to find out what he was trying to say. Neither moved or said a word as they waited for him to continue.

"And it has become clear to me that there is nothing I have regretted more, then my treatment of the both of you over the last number of years."

The two hanyous before him just stood there, wide-eyed and in shock. Did Sesshoumaru just say that he _regretted _how he had treated them?

"A-are you serious?" Inuyasha asked, while Inukigo was completely speechless.

A nod was all he received in answer. A sudden anger overcame Inuyasha and he growled menacingly.

"What the hell do you take us for? Do you think it could be so simple that all you had to say was that you regretted it and it would be like nothing ever happened? Do you think that either of us could forgive you for what you've done? Especially what you've done to her!" he yelled, pointing at Inukigo.

Sesshoumaru looked Inuyasha straight in the eye as he answered.

"I did not come here expecting your forgiveness. Nor did I plan to ask for it, because I see myself as unworthy of receiving it. My only intent was to tell you both that…I am sorry for my actions. Whether either of you choose to believe that or take action is completely your choice. I will-"

Sesshoumaru cut himself off as an unexpected weight crashed into his chest. That weight just happened to be Inukigo. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru just looked at her in confused shock, neither sure how to respond to her actions.

"I forgive you," both heard her whisper.

Inuyasha was the first to find his voice.

"You what! Inukigo, are you crazy! You're saying that you can forget everything that he's done and forgive him for it? You can't be serious!"

Inukigo didn't release her grip on Sesshoumaru's kimono, but turned to look over her shoulder at Inuyasha.

"I never said that I would forget anything. Those experiences will stay with me for the rest of my life. But…I'm willing to forgive him. I…I want my brother back."

Inuyasha looked at her sadly, not really sure how to react. He knew how much Inukigo missed having Sesshoumaru in her life as her brother, but was it really wise for either of them to forgive him for all that he had done to them? Especially what he had done to Inukigo just a week ago?

"Inukigo…I don't know…Are you really sure about this?"

Inukigo nodded.

"I am."

"Why?"

Both hanyous looked at Sesshoumaru now that he had spoken.

"Why, what?" Inukigo asked.

"Why is it that you seem to be able to forgive me so easily after what I have done to you? I do not understand."

Inukigo gave him a small smile.

"Because, I can understand your reasons," she said calmly, "It would only be natural for you to seek revenge for the death of your kin, and because you blamed Inuyasha and I for father's death, we were the one's who suffered your revenge."

Neither brother spoke, both seeing her reasoning, and both left speechless by her ability to forgive. After a few tense moments, Inuyasha was the one to break the silence with a sigh.

"I…I guess I can see your point Inukigo," he then turned a hard glare on Sesshoumaru, "But that doesn't mean that I forgive you. The pain that you have caused her," he said, pointing at Inukigo, "I'm not sure I could ever forgive."

"Inuyasha…" Inukigo tried to reason as she released Sesshoumaru and turned to look at him, but Inuyasha shook his head to silence her.

"You won't be able to change my mind Inukigo. I've seen you hurt too many times because of him, both physically and emotionally. I don't know how you can forgive him so easily, but I can't. That's just the way it is," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Inukigo nodded sadly, knowing that she would never force an opinion on him, even if she could. She should have expected this reaction from him, though she had been hoping for him to be a little more forgiving. At least he was no longer objecting to her action of forgiving Sesshoumaru.

A few moments later, Inukigo began fidgeting and looking between Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru nervously. She really wanted to reunite with Sesshoumaru properly, but she was worried about what Inuyasha's reaction would be if she started to act so closely with him. It didn't take long for Inuyasha to notice her unease, and seeing the looks she was sending between himself and Sesshoumaru he took a guess at what she was thinking about.

'_Maybe she wants to get reacquainted with him? Then why is she looking at me so uncertainly? Maybe she's worried about what I'll think. I don't really like the idea of her being alone with him…but it might be better if I left. Inukigo trusts Sesshoumaru, and she's right about him coming here only to talk; if he was here to fight he would have started one already._'

His mind made up, Inuyasha turned his back, catching both Inukigo's and Sesshoumaru's attention.

"I'm going to go back to the others and help set up a camp so we can get lunch ready. Try not to be too long or everyone will start worrying about you."

Inukigo smiled at him gratefully and gave him a nod. Inuyasha nodded in return, then left to walk back to where they had left the rest of their companions. When he was out of sight, Inukigo turned to Sesshoumaru again, this time with her eyes lowered in a slightly submissive gesture. Sesshoumaru immediately realized what she was doing and inclined his head to acknowledge her. As soon as she was given the 'okay' Inukigo approached him and rose up as far as she could and started nuzzling her head underneath his chin while happy little whimpers made their way up her throat. Sesshoumaru answered her with deep growls of his own, both reaffirming their reunion after having been separated for so long. After a few moments, Inukigo pulled away with a smile on her face.

"Well," she started, keeping her happy grin, "Where should we start?"

Sorry, I had to cut it off there, but it would have turned out way too long if I didn't. I hope that I've reaffirmed everyone's faith in Sesshoumaru now…I ended up making a number of people hate him…I never intended to do that, lol. I had to have him fight with Inukigo at least once, 'cause it would have been strange for him to show up and be all accepting right away (plus I needed the little bit of action). I'll try to explain his reasons, and Inukigo's reasons for forgiving him a little better in the next chapter.

And before people comment about it, the stuff I was saying about wolf demons near the beginning of the chapter is totally made up, just like all the other stuff about demons is either made up or inspired by other stories that I've read. It's not meant to reflect badly on Kouga, this is just the main worry that Inuyasha has about Kouga and Inukigo being together. Okay, I think I covered everything I wanted to, so on with the reviews!

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MM . ORG --

SilverShadowKitsune - Aww, I'm sorry that I made you have that opinion of Sesshoumaru. I love him to, and like I said earlier, I never meant to make people hate him. And I just had to have Kouga show up, couldn't pass up the opportunity for cute Inukigo/Kouga fluffy moments, lol. As for the item you requested, it's coming along well. I just have a little more work to do on it and it will be finished. I'm sorry that it's taking so long, but I'm a terrible procrastinator.

Jenner - Thank you so much. That idea about having Inukigo and Kouga get separated from the rest of the group sounds very interesting…I think I'll try to fit that in somewhere soon, lol.

ninja-of-the-night - Yeah, I was debating whether to use those words at first, but I wanted to show how traumatic the event was for Inukigo, so I decided to keep them. I don't know if anyone was confused by this, but I'll point this out anyway - Inukigo and Inuyasha did not see what happened to their mother, they heard it. The images that Inukigo saw in her dream after the young versions of herself and Inuyasha were hidden are ones that her mind created based on the sounds. They would get worse as she grew older, because as she matured her mind could create new pictures, but like she explained to Inuyasha a number of chapters back, she learned to deal with them. Anyways, back to the reply…Sorry, no Inukigo and Inuyasha tag-teaming Sesshoumaru's ass, lol. And you'll have to wait for Kouga to make Inukigo his intended, but it won't be too much longer.

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FF . NET --

Patriot1776 - Thank you very much. The nightmare was hard to write, I wanted to make sure that I made a strong impact with it. I suppose you could say that being injured weakened her resolve a lot so she reacted to the nightmare like she would have if she hadn't taught herself to deal with them when she was younger. And thankfully, no more fighting with Sesshoumaru, so no one has to worry about Inukigo acting stupid and trying to take him on by herself, lol.

Pyrinsomniac - Okay cracks knuckles. First, thank you for that immense review. That was not only the longest review I have ever had, it's also the longest one I've ever seen, lol. Well, about acid, yes a base would neutralize it, but I'm not so sure about water spreading it. Water is neutral, so I'm not sure how it would trying to remember stuff from high school chemistry I think I might look into that (if I remember, lol). Yeah, inu-youkai like from The Lucky Ones. That is my favourite fanfic, and I really liked that about it too, so I felt compelled to use it, hehe. Shippou's 'wakata' was inspired by episode 107, but the characterization of Kouga and Inuyasha was unintentional. After you said that I realized how true it was. Heh, either it was a total fluke, or I've watched some of the episodes enough times that I'm doing it subconsciously…(I wonder which it is (Vv). I really like it when I'm forced to go back and read my stuff again, and see things I didn't when I wrote it. The connection you made between the bandits and the group of boys that tried to sexually assault her when she was younger is one example. I didn't see that, but now that you pointed it out I can see how that may have influenced her reaction. And that incident could have also made her dreams more vivid, so it could have worked both ways. Another example is the question you asked about if it got under Inukigo's skin that Inuyasha fared better in fights with Sesshoumaru. I never really considered it before, but I thought about it for this chapter. No, I don't think it does. I had Inukigo think about it close to the end of this chapter, and her thought about it was that it was from her own 'weakness'. Inuyasha was able to hate Sesshoumaru for what he had done, Inukigo couldn't. She doesn't fare as well because she can't bring herself to want to hurt him, whereas Inuyasha has no problem with doing that. The fact that Inuyasha happened to be human was not what I had intended to do in the first place, but out of curiosity I tried to roughly count the days from the full moon. It turned out that it was about time for the new moon, so I decided to just put it in there in case I forgot (I think it's about 2 weeks between the new and full moon, but I don't have a calendar to check right now). I'm gonna start thinking about that one-shot, sounds like it would be a good idea. Although Inuyasha did see Inukigo stand up for herself, you know he's still gonna find reasons to worry about her anyway. I picture him as the overprotective brother who tries to keep all the boys away from his sister, lol. And now that I'm bringing Sesshoumaru back into her life, imagine what that's gonna be like, lol. And as you can see, no Inuyasha and Inukigo tag-teaming Sesshoumaru (a few people wanted to see that…). And don't worry about talking about the characters like they really exist, I do that a lot too. Guess we're both a little insane, ne? lol. Thanks again for the great review, it really got my brain workin'.

Skitzo - Well, I will be bringing Kikyou in eventually to cause problems for Inuyasha and Kagome, but not yet. Maybe in a few more chapters. I don't really have much interest in writing about her, so I want her there as little as possible.

InuYasha Obsession Grizzly - The limes do come pretty close don't they…? I have had comments that I should just go ahead and write the lemon, but I need to develop the story a bit more before that. Well, I probably could put out a chapter every week, but I don't for two reasons - 1. I'm to a point in the story now that I don't have well planned out. I'm not sure what should come next so it takes me some time to put everything together, and 2. As I said a few replies up, I am a notorious procrastinator. I have a bad habit of putting things off. But I think I'm gonna start trying now, just to see if I can get out a chapter every week or two.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

When Inuyasha stepped into the small camp all alone and looking pensive Kouga and Kagome were the first ones to their feet.

"Where's Inukigo?" Kouga asked, concern evident in his voice.

"She's still with Sesshoumaru," Inuyasha replied, "They needed to talk privately."

"You left her there alone?"

Inuyasha nodded.

"If you're worried about Sesshoumaru hurting her, don't be. He might be a bastard, but he's no liar. If all he says he wants is to talk, then that's really all he wants. Besides," he added quietly, "They've made up."

Everyone's eyes widened at that statement.

"Really?" Kagome asked, "What happened?"

Inuyasha sighed and sat down beside her and facing his other companions.

"He said that he regretted what he had done to us, and that he was sorry. It was so weird," he commented, a confused look on his face.

"Yeah," Sango commented, "Sesshoumaru has always seemed cold and unfeeling. It's a shock that he would actually regret something, much less admit it to anyone."

"That's what I was thinking," a frown then came to his face, "Inukigo might have forgiven him, but it's gonna take a hell of a lot more than that for me to forgive him."

"I can't believe that she would forgive him so easily," Kagome commented, "I'm surprised that she would, after what he's done to her…"

"I was surprised too," he replied, looking thoughtful, "But now that I've had time to think about it, it's not that strange. She was very close to Sesshoumaru when we were pups, and she's always missed that closeness."

"I thought that she hated Sesshoumaru," Miroku said, sounding a little confused, "There were a few times that one of us compared her to Sesshoumaru and she grew rather angry."

"Yeah, I know. But that anger was never directed at Sesshoumaru, no matter how she tried to make it seem that way. It was more towards herself, for not being able to hate him for everything that he did. She was also using it to cover up the sadness that she felt over his rejection."

Kagome looked at him sadly.

'_Just like you do, Inuyasha. The two of you are so alike._'

"So what do we do now? Just wait here for them to come back?" Kouga asked, sounding a little irritated.

"Yeah, unless you want to be the one to go interrupt their conversation," Inuyasha answered with a hint of a smirk in his voice, "I don't think Inukigo would be too happy about that."

Kouga immediately shut up at hearing that. Inuyasha laughed to himself.

'_Already has you wrapped around her finger does she, wolf?_'

"I'm sure they won't take too long," Kagome reassured, "Sesshoumaru wouldn't leave Rin-chan for very long," she pointed out, looking over to where Rin and Shippou were playing not far away.

The two children laughed happily amongst themselves, while Jaken sat far away from everyone with a scowl on his face.

Kouga remained silent after that for a few moments, but then spoke up again.

"Ooi, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha's attention was caught immediately and he looked up from his conversation with Kagome to look at Kouga.

"Huh? What?"

Surprisingly, Kouga looked away as he spoke reluctantly.

"Can…can I talk to you for a minute?"

Inuyasha eyed him curiously.

"I guess so. Why, what do you want?"

"Actually," Kouga replied, still looking away, "I would rather that it be private."

Inuyasha looked around at his other companions, who were just as bewildered as he was by Kouga's request.

'_What in the Hell does he want?_'

He looked to Kagome, who just shrugged at him and motioned for him to go and see what Kouga wanted. Heaving a sigh he nodded and stood up, causing Kouga to finally look at him.

"C'mon then and let's get this over with."

Kouga nodded and stood up as well, then followed Inuyasha away from the group and into the forest, in the opposite direction that Inukigo and Sesshoumaru were in.

* * *

Inukigo sat patiently on a fallen log, waiting to see if Sesshoumaru would be the first to speak. They needed to talk, both of them knew it but neither really knew where to start. After about five minutes of very uncomfortable silence, Inukigo finally took the plunge and spoke.

"That little girl that you had with you…what's her name?"

"Her name is Rin," Sesshoumaru replied calmly.

Inukigo nodded and decided to keep with the current topic.

"I caught your scent awhile ago, I was surprised when I picked up her scent with yours. I never thought that you would have a young girl with you. What's the story behind her?"

"Some time ago, Inuyasha injured me, and she discovered me while I was recovering. She approached me without fear, and kept returning even though I repeatedly told her to leave. After I had recovered, I found her dead in a forest path, having been killed by wolves."

Inukigo's eyes widened.

"She was dead? Then how…?"

"The Tenseiga allowed me to revive her."

"The sword father left you? But I thought that you couldn't use it, unless…"

"Unless I felt compassion, yes I know. I don't know what came over me that day, but I wanted her to live, and the Tenseiga responded to that. I think it happened because she had no fear of me, and…she reminded me of you."

"What?" Inukigo gasped in shock.

"When I spoke to her, the way she smiled reminded me of you when you were young. As time went on, she followed me like a shadow. It was like you had been reborn as a human child, there were times that I feared that had been what happened to you."

"You…You were worried that I had died? But why? I was sure, especially after last time, that you really wanted to kill me."

Sesshoumaru shook his head.

"I tried to make myself believe that was what I wanted, but I don't think that I ever truly desired your death."

"T-Then why?" Inukigo pleaded, hers eyes pained, "Why did you cause us both so much pain if that was never your intention?"

Sesshoumaru was silent for a few moments to gather his thoughts.

"I don't really know how to explain my actions towards yourself and Inuyasha. When Chichi-ue died, I remember feeling an extreme anger towards him. That a demon of his status, a taiyoukai, could be defeated was something I couldn't believe. In my attempt to find some sort of explanation, I concluded that his weakness had been protecting you and your mother. And thus, my anger transferred over to you and Inuyasha. At first, I contented myself with forcing you out of our home, but then I began to grow angry at myself for not taking my proper revenge for father's death. That's when I started to attack the both of you, but I could never carry out what I had intended…"

"We were the one's you blamed for father's death, but you could never kill us," Inukigo confirmed.

Sesshoumaru nodded then continued.

"That in turn made me angry towards myself. I, my father's oldest son, could not bring myself to take revenge for his death."

"And that too was directed at us," Inukigo stated, and hung her head.

Sesshoumaru remained silent and she took it as confirmation.

"Father may have died protecting us," Inukigo said quietly, "But he was never weak. Having the courage to protect those precious to you is not weak."

"I understand that now."

"Rin," Inukigo stated.

"Yes, Rin," Sesshoumaru replied with a nod, "She has shown me that having someone or something to protect can be the greatest motivation and bring out a person's greatest strength. I have seen this in our brother as well, when he protects the miko."

Inukigo smiled.

"He would give his life to protect Kagome. The have marked each other, and plan to complete the mating when Naraku is defeated."

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened slightly, though having noticed the closeness between the two during his encounters with them, was not surprised.

"I see. She is a good woman for him. Hopefully she will be able to temper his tendency to be stubborn and rash."

Inukigo laughed lightly.

"I wouldn't say that. She can be just as stubborn and rash as him at times. Though she does have a calming way about her."

Sesshoumaru nodded, then seemed to grow thoughtful for a moment.

"How much does either Inuyasha or yourself know of properly performing the mating ritual?"

Inukigo was startled by his question, but paused for moment to give it thought. She shook her head.

"I never really considered it before. Next to nothing. We've always known that there is a ritual, and the first mating takes place during the ritual, but neither of us know how to perform it. We believed that it was instinctual and we would know when the time came."

Sesshoumaru sat down beside her on the log.

"It is not instinctual. It is something that you must be taught. When Inuyasha and the miko decide to complete the ritual, come to me beforehand, and I will explain the process."

Inukigo looked at him wide-eyed, having not expected this from him.

"Arigatou."

Sesshoumaru nodded in acknowledgement, and both were silent momentarily, not sure where to continue from there.

"Inukigo," Sesshoumaru asked carefully, "What happened to you fifty two years ago? I discovered that Inuyasha had been sealed by that miko, but you seemed to disappear."

Inukigo remained silent for a moment, contemplating what exactly she should tell him. Before she could register what she was doing, she had begun talking. She told him all about when she had been sealed, and the two years that she spent alone before that. She also shared with him the nightmares she had experienced while in her sleep, which led to her telling him about events that had happened after her and Inuyasha's mother had died. She sat there spilling out everything to him for nearly an hour before she realized that she was rambling and stopped talking.

Sesshoumaru sat there silently for a few moments, taking in everything that he had just heard.

"I am sorry that I was not there for you at that time. Perhaps if we had been on better terms, you would not have felt that a necessary option."

"Maybe," Inukigo agreed, "But it's okay. The past is the past. If it would change how my life is today, I would not change a thing about my past. A lot of it was painful, and I admit that some of those things are still with me, but what's important to me now is my present and my future."

Sesshoumaru nodded in understanding, but then got a gleam in his eye that Inukigo didn't recognize.

"I don't suppose that your present and future would happen to include a certain wolf demon?"

Inukigo's face flushed deep red and she started stuttering.

"I-I…Uhh…How…?"

"How did I know?" Inukigo nodded, "His scent is very strong on you. He is also very protective. You are in the first stage of courtship?"

"Hai," Inukigo replied, still slightly embarrassed, "He found the field where you and I last battled. He's been sticking pretty close to me ever since then. I'm surprised that he backed down so easily when you first showed up. He was very angry when he found out that it was you that hurt me."

Sesshoumaru turned to look down at the ground beside his feet.

"I am ashamed of my actions on that day. It wasn't until Inuyasha's woman spoke that I truly realized the impact I was having on you and Inuyasha," he lifted his head to look at her, "I had no idea that you still felt love for me. I believed that you long ago began to feel nothing but hate because of all that I had done to you. Why is it that you do not?"

"I don't know," Inukigo replied, "I tried to, and when I realized that I couldn't, I tried to make it seem like I did. Inuyasha has always seen through it though."

"Is that what you were trying to prove in your fights with me? That you hated me?"

"Partly," Inukigo explained, "I was also trying to prove that I was above…needing you. But I always did…I still do…I guess," she admitted sheepishly.

"Do you truly wish for me to be a part of your life?"

Inukigo glanced at him from the corners of her eyes.

"Yes."

"If it is what you truly want, then I shall become a part of your life again."

Inukigo's head shot up and she stared at him in disbelief.

"Really?"

Sesshoumaru nodded.

"As you yourself said earlier, this Sesshoumaru does not lie. I speak the truth."

Inukigo looked back down at her hands folded in her lap.

"Thank you."

Sesshoumaru gave her no reply, but instead stood up from the log.

"We should return. Inuyasha and the rest of your companions will begin to worry."

Inukigo nodded in agreement and stood up to join him, and both began walking back to where the rest of the shard hunters had made camp.

* * *

Upon re-entering camp, Inukigo took in the sight of her companions. Shippou and Rin were playing happily under the watchful eye of Kirara, while Jaken sat off to the side, looking rather annoyed with his current situation. Kagome and Sango were working on lunch, and Miroku seemed to be questioning Inuyasha, who for some reason had a very smug look on his face. She then laid eyes on Kouga, and one eyebrow cocked in confusion. He sat away from everyone and looked extremely…embarrassed? She immediately turned her gaze back to Inuyasha, and began to grow suspicious.

'_Okaaaaay…what happened while I was gone?_'

Kagome looked up from what she was doing and smiled.

"Inukigo-chan! You're just in time, lunch is ready," she then looked to the tall inu-youkai at the female hanyou's side, "Will you be staying as well, Sesshoumaru-sama?"

Inuyasha sent her a look that said he wasn't happy about her using an honorific, but it went unnoticed.

"I have no need of human food. We are leaving."

Kagome laughed nervously.

'_Of course, the great Sesshoumaru has spent enough time around us already, I suppose._'

Inukigo glanced at him from the corners of her eyes.

'_And he's back to being all stuck up and arrogant. I guess it can't be helped._'

"Rin. Jaken," he spoke in monotone. Both mentioned rushed to him without question.

Jaken was silent as they left, probably happy to get away from the 'irritating' humans. Rin however turned and waved as she walked.

"Goodbye everyone! Goodbye Shippou-chan!"

Everyone, minus Inuyasha and Kouga, waved back, and Shippou sported a bright blush. Sesshoumaru glanced over his shoulder and his eyes locked with Inukigo. She saw what he was trying to tell her and sent him a smirk.

'_Yeah, I'll see you soon Aniue._'

When the trio had disappeared from sight, Inukigo looked down at the little fox kit that had made his way over to Kagome.

"Well, well, Shippou. It appears as though you and Rin got along very well. You got a goodbye all to yourself."

Shippou glared at her even as his face glowed red from embarrassment. He crossed his arms and turned his back to her in a pout, and Inukigo couldn't help but laugh. Kagome and Sango began serving up lunch, and all laughter was forgotten as the entire group gathered around to get their share. When Kouga sat down beside Inukigo, she saw him send a glare Inuyasha's way, though he still looked thoroughly embarrassed.

"Hey," she said softly, catching his attention, "What's wrong?"

Kouga looked at her, and if anything, he looked even more embarrassed.

"N-nothing. What makes you think anything is wrong?"

Inukigo eyed him sceptically.

"You're acting weird…what's going on?"

"It's just your imagination. Nothing's wrong."

Inukigo knew that he was lying, but it seemed to be something that he didn't want her to know about, so she left it alone. A muffled snicker from Inuyasha's direction had her turning her attention to him, and the overly innocent look on his face told her that he had done something. No one else present hinted as to what was going on. None of them knew exactly what had happened between Inuyasha and Kouga, but they had all been told by Inuyasha to not breathe a word to Inukigo that they had even gone off on their own to talk. Kagome had her suspicions, and she was determined to get answers from Inuyasha when they started moving again.

When everyone was finished eating, Kagome and Sango went about cleaning their dishes, while Inuyasha and Miroku cleared out the camp. Shippou and Kirara just sat around and waited for everyone to get ready. Kouga pulled Inukigo off to the side and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I'm gonna head back to check on the pack. I'll see you in a few days, okay?"

Inukigo nodded and smiled up at him.

"Thanks for staying all this time. I know you were worried about your pack too."

"I know that they can look after themselves."

"Oh, and are you saying that I can't?" she asked with a false angry glare.

Kouga caught on to her playing and smirked.

"Exactly."

Inukigo smacked him playfully on the arm, earning a chuckle from the wolf youkai that held her within his embrace. He leaned down swiftly and planted a quick kiss on her lips before pulling back slightly.

"I'll see you soon. Be careful, okay?"

"Mmhmm, you too."

Kouga smirked and gave her a wink, which had Inukigo blushing lightly, then released her and turned away. Before taking off he looked over his shoulder and waved, said his farewells to the group, then was gone in a cloud of dust. When Inukigo went to join the rest of her companions, she saw that they all sported amused looks, and remembering that they had all just seen Kouga kiss her, blushed an even deeper red. Inuyasha, however, didn't appear amused so much as he did annoyed.

"Try to keep it to yourselves will ya? Nobody asked for a show."

Inukigo growled as her embarrassment completely vanished.

"Excuse me! Maybe you should try taking your own advice! I've seen you and Kagome kiss plenty of times, and I've never complained about it."

Inuyasha's cheeks gained a pink tint from her words. From the look on her face, she was telling him that even though she hadn't said it, she wasn't referring to just the kissing that she had witnessed…

"Keh!"

"I think that you're very right, Inukigo-chan," Kagome added, "And I think it was very sweet. There's nothing wrong with public displays of affection."

Inuyasha growled and roughly grabbed Kagome's now fully packed backpack.

"Could we please just drop this and get going? We've wasted enough time here as it is."

The rest of the group laughed at Inuyasha's dismissal, earning a glare from the annoyed and embarrassed half demon, then followed along behind him to continue the search for Naraku.

* * *

"C'mon, Inuyasha! Tell me, please?"

"I said 'no' Kagome."

"Pleaseeeeee…."

"No!"

"Why not?" Kagome asked with a pout.

"I already told you 'why not'."

"But Inukigo-chan is all the way up there, and she's talking to Shippou. She won't hear us."

Inuyasha realized that she was right, and that he had no other reason to keep it from her.

"Oh…alright, fine," he grumbled.

Kagome giggled at his expression.

"So…spill it. What did Kouga want earlier?"

Inuyasha sighed. Kagome could be really nosy when she wanted to be.

"He wanted my permission to ask Inukigo to become his intended mate."

Kagome's eyes widened and a huge grin split her face.

"Really! That's great!" she then sobered just a little when she remembered how Kouga had been acting when they returned, and leaned over his shoulder a little, "You _did _say 'yes', right?"

Inuyasha snorted and gave her a tolerant look from the corners of his eyes.

"Of course I said yes," Kagome gave a sigh of relief, but it cut off at his next words, "Doesn't mean that I didn't have a bit of fun first though."

"Inuyasha…" she started, her voice hinting that he could be in trouble, "What did you do?"

"Nothing serious," Inuyasha tried to explain before she grew angry, "I just messed with his head a little before I told him yes. Pretended that I didn't know he could provide for her or handle her, stuff like that. It was totally harmless."

"That still wasn't very nice Inuyasha," Kagome chastised, "Kouga really likes Inukigo-chan, and you made him think that you might not let them be together."

"Maybe," he replied and shrugged his shoulders as best he could while still running, "But it sure as hell was funny watching the wolf squirm. And that's not even the best part."

"I'm not sure that I want to know…"

"You know that in order for a male to take a female as his intended mate, he needs to have permissions from the female's parents?"

"Yeah…" Kagome replied, not really sure what he was getting at.

"Well, in the event that neither parent is living, the decision goes to the female's closest family member or the head of the family. Before, the decision was mine, because I am Inukigo's closest family member, but now that Sesshoumaru has accepted her as his sister again, the final decision goes to him."

"What!" Kagome exclaimed, but kept her voice too low for Inukigo to hear, "You mean that Kouga has to go ask Sesshoumaru for permission to mark Inukigo-chan?"

"Yup. Didn't you notice that when Kouga left he went in the same direction as Sesshoumaru? That's in the opposite direction of his pack's den."

"Whoa," Kagome breathed as she took in the situation, "Sesshoumaru won't say no, will he?" she asked worriedly.

Inuyasha's face grew thoughtful as he considered it.

"I don't think so…he saw how protective Kouga was earlier and probably asked Inukigo about it. If Kouga has the brains to mention that I said yes, then he shouldn't have any problems at all. Sesshoumaru may have the final say, but as her closest family, my opinion does count. If he knows that I agreed to let him mark Inukigo, then Sesshoumaru will know that Kouga has been doing something right."

"I hope that Sesshoumaru agrees," Kagome replied, her voice laced with concern, "They'll both be devastated if they can't be together."

"Yeah, I know," Inuyasha said, then rubbed her thighs reassuringly, "I'm sure everything will work out fine. Try not to worry too much about it, okay?"

"Okay," Kagome agreed, nodding against his shoulder, "I just hope that you're right. They both deserve to be happy."

"Yeah, I know. I'm sure that Sesshoumaru would never do something like that to Inukigo. Everything should be fine," he replied reassuringly, though Kagome couldn't see the look of uncertainty that flashed across his face.

'_At least, I hope it will be._'

* * *

Okay, first things first, -ahem- GOMEN NASAI! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! This is what happens when I promise to have a chapter out in 'a week or two'. I end up taking over a month -sigh-. I really am sorry that I didn't update when I said I would, it's just that my brain just stalled whenever it came to writing something for this. Thus, the reason for this chapter being quite a bit shorter than my previous ones - I left you guys with no update for far too long and I felt that I could safely end it here and give you a chapter. I'm trying to work on the next one, but it's not turning out much better. Sooo…since ideas for this story are slow in coming…I'm wondering if I should go ahead and start posting an AU fic I've started working on. I didn't want to until I was done with All Things Come Full Circle, since I thought it might be hard to maintain two stories, but judging by the pace of this story, I don't think that will be a problem…(--) Well, it's titled 'Shigetsu Incorporated', and I'll give you guys the summary so you can let me know if you're interested.

Shingetsu Inc., one of the top electronics industries in Japan, has been in the possession of the Taisho family for generations. Their ownership has never been challenged - until now. An evil business tycoon has his eyes set on the multibillion dollar company, and is willing to use any means to get it, however dirty they may be.

Kagome Higurashi, a new student to Shikon High, finds herself drawn into the middle of the power struggle, when she becomes involved with the youngest of the three Taisho siblings, Inuyasha.

Will they be able to put an end to the scheming of Onigumo and Naraku, or will more be lost then just Shingetsu Inc.?

It's kinda original and not so original all at the same time. The last names (Taisho, Taijya, Houshi, etc.) have been used countless times before, but I like them so I think I'm going to keep them. Let me know if it sounds decent, and I'll post the first chapter either later tomorrow or the day after. Um…I think I said everything that I needed to, so on with the reviews.

****

-- MM . ORG --

SilverShadowKitsune - I'm glad that you like Sesshoumaru again. I can see him regretting, but I can't really picture him apologizing either, but one of the good things about fan fiction, is that you can make up background information that will explain the OOC-ness of the characters, lol. Let's pretend that Sesshoumaru didn't become so cold until his father died, and now that he's realized the 'error of his ways' (that sounds so corny), he's slowly returning to the way he was before. Maybe not completely, but partially (If you've seen the third movie, then you know that it makes him out to be cold and stoic even before his father dies, but I'm not going by anything in that movie). Sorry, no fluffy Inu/Kag moment (I'll try for next chapter). As for your picture…I got side-tracked again, sorry. It was almost done, and I just forgot about it. I'll try to finish it by the end of the week (I promise).

Jenner93 - Glad you liked it. Yeah, it's OOC. I think he is capable of regretting, just not admitting to it or actually apologizing. It works with the story, couldn't have them fighting for the whole thing, and I can't see Inukigo forgiving him unless he apologized first.

ninja-of-the-night - Maybe I'll have to get Inuyasha to spill his guts a little bit later on (OOC-ness all around…), and have something happen that will contribute to him forgiving Sesshoumaru (more OOC-ness…). Kouga will be marking Inukigo soon, maybe chapter 17. I find Miroku and Sango stuff a little hard to write (I don't know why, it isn't as if I don't like them), but I'll get around to a scene or two for them too.

****

-- FF . NET --

Patriot1776 - No worries, Kouga would never stoop that low. I'm just developing a little difference between dog demon mating and wolf demon mating (that I totally made up, of course). Dog demons will only have sex with their mates, and the first time is during a mating ritual. Once they mate, they are bound to their partner. Wolf demons can have sex without being mates, and they are not bound until a ritual is performed (This will be important much later). I hope I portrayed the reasons behind Sesshoumaru's actions well enough (not that any reasons would truly justify what he did, and he knows that). Inuyasha will forgive him in time, I'll have something happen later that will help it along.

Skitzo - Yeah, I know. He was really OOC. I think it would have been OOC no matter how much time I gave him, and I didn't feel like dragging that part out.

InuYasha Obsession Grizzly - I'm sorry for making you wait so long (grr…stupid brain). I know you weren't saying to write the lemon right away, I was just bringing up what a few people once said to me a while ago. I'm glad that I inspire you J . And thanks for reviewing on Long Awaited Reunion. I was disappointed that I got so few reviews. They're nice to have, and I love hearing from readers. Thanks for the compliments, I hope that my slowness doesn't affect your enthusiasm towards my story.

Akuda - Hi, thanks for the review. Hope you didn't lose interest because it took me so long to update.

SesshouMaru's Kitty - Thanks for the review. Sorry that I didn't update so soon.


	16. Chapter 16

Yes, I am happy to report that I'm still alive and kicking. Now here is the long overdue chapter 16! Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter 16**

"Kagura, what do you have to report?" Naraku inquired as he stared down at the wind youkai kneeling before him.

"Inuyasha and his group are growing closer to this castle, as are Kouga and Sesshoumaru. None of them seem to be aware of it at this time, however, it will only be a matter of time before they discover the barrier."

"I see. Is there anything else I should be made aware of?"

"Inuyasha and his twin seem to be stronger now that they have been together for a time. He also seems to have grown closer to the miko that travels with him."

Naraku smirked at that information.

"I'm sure Kikyou will be delighted to hear this development. In the mean time, perhaps it is time that we test our little band of shard hunters. Kachuu."

On cue, a woman stepped forth from the shadows. Her hair was as black as coal and held back in a braid that fell to her waist, and her deep crimson eyes stood out starkly against her pale skin. She wore a short, sleeveless kimono that was a red that matched her eyes and was decorated with black dragon that coiled around her body. There was also a sheathed short-sword strapped across the small of her back. As soon as she was before Naraku, she bowed lowly and remained that way as she spoke.

"How may I be of service to you, Naraku-sama?"

Kagura eyed the new incarnation suspiciously.

'_This one is just like the last, a mind of her own but completely obedient. It seems as though he has perfected the ability of producing detachments. If none of our enemies find him soon, he may grow too powerful to be stopped._'

"Is there something you wish to know Kagura?" Naraku's voice pierced through her thoughts.

Kagura jerked and quickly replied.

"No, Naraku-sama. My mind was wandering. Did you say something?"

Naraku grinned at her evilly, and Kagura had the feeling he knew what she had been thinking.

"Kachuu will be joining you this time. You shall bring her to Inuyasha and his group, and we shall see just how much they have improved since the last time we faced them."

Kagura glanced at the woman who was still kneeling before Naraku.

"Will she fare any better than Koorimizu did?" she wondered out loud.

Kachuu was the one to turn and face Kagura with blazing eyes.

"I am far stronger than my sister was. I will avenge her death after carrying out Naraku-sama's wish."

"You intend to go after the wolf prince?"

Kachuu nodded.

"Yes, he and the female hanyou. But I will deal with them both after I have filled out my orders and tested the group."

Kagura tapped her fan against her thigh lightly.

"Shall we go then? Or do you need time to prepare yourself?"

Kachuu stood and walked towards the wind demon.

"I am ready."

Sparing one last glance at Naraku, who was still sitting with his back to a window on the opposite side of the room, Kagura turned and led Kachuu away and down the hallway towards the exit of the castle. Curiosity got the better of her before long and she broke the heavy silence between herself and the other female demon.

"What does Naraku hold over you?"

Kachuu looked at Kagura curiously.

"I'm afraid I do not understand your question."

"You're so obedient, just like the last one. No demons borne of Naraku tend to be completely loyal, but seem to obey him without question. Why?"

Kahuu kept her eyes trained on Kagura for a moment before turning back to the hallway in front of her.

"He doesn't exactly 'hold something over me', as you put it. Both mine and Naraku's minds are linked in such a way that I know what he desires, and I am compelled to fulfill them as if they were my own. Koorimizu was connected to him in the same way."

Kagura began to grow nervous. Could Naraku enter this demon's mind? Did he know that she was asking these questions, and would she have to be careful around her or risk alerting him to her treachery? Deciding that there was too much to be left to chance, Kagura felt it would be better to act as though it was Naraku that was with her, not this new detachment, Kachuu.

By the time Kagura had finished her musings, the two demon women were outside and Kachuu was watching her expectantly. Kagura 'tsked' in annoyance and pulled a feather from her hair. It transformed to accommodate both women and after they were both situated Kagura had it take off and directed it towards their target of the group of unsuspecting shard hunters.

* * *

"Inuyasha, I know that you did something. Don't think that I've forgotten." 

Inuyasha looked up at his sister with a large helping of noodles stuffed halfway in his mouth as she towered above him and sent him a hard glare. He frowned in return and quickly swallowed his meal so he could reply.

"What are you goin' on about?"

Inukigo tapped her foot and crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance as she continued to stare down at him.

"I know you did something to Kouga. He was acting strangely before he left, and I saw the look on your face. What did you do?" she demanded.

Inuyasha stood up so she wouldn't be looking down on him and rolled his eyes. He had been hoping that she wouldn't have noticed, but unfortunately for him she had. Now he was going to have to keep denying it or come up with a really believable excuse.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," he told her, trying to play innocent.

He noticed Inukigo sniffing the air delicately, and knew exactly what she was trying to do.

'_Good luck trying to find out if I'm lying that way. I'm not lying about anything. She asked what I did to Kouga, and I didn't do a damn thing. I said stuff to him, but that's not what she asked me…_'

Inukigo frowned, and Inuyasha knew that she had found out exactly what he thought she would. A little perturbed, she was about to say something else, but then Miroku spoke up.

"Inukigo, I can assure you that Inuyasha really did do nothing to Kouga. All of us were here and we can all vouch for that."

Inukigo stared hard at Miroku and Inuyasha saw her sniffing the air again. He almost laughed.

'_I know that you have a better nose, but if you couldn't smell a lie off me, then you definitely won't get anything from him._'

Just as he anticipated, Inukigo didn't pick up anything and her shoulders slumped in defeat. She sat down in a huff and crossed her arms over her chest.

"He was acting so strangely though. I wonder what was wrong," she said a moment later, her voice and expression now pensive.

Inuyasha could easily pick up the thick scent worry from her, and wanted so badly to reassure her, but knew that if he said much more on the topic she would smell a lie on him. Sooner or later he'd be sure to mess up. He was relieved when Miroku spoke.

"Perhaps Kouga was just on edge from Sesshoumaru's presence. He was rather worried about Sesshoumaru trying to harm you again."

Inukigo seemed to think about it for a moment, then nodded when she agreed with Miroku's reasoning.

"I guess so," she replied, though she still looked a little worried despite her acceptance of the explanation.

Kagome chose that moment to interrupt the discussion. Up until now, she, Sango, and Shippou had remained silent in order to prevent drawing attention to themselves. They knew that Inuyasha and Miroku were trying to keep Inukigo from finding out that Inuyasha was the reason for Kouga's strange behaviour. They also knew that if Inukigo had questioned either of them that they would not be able to keep her from smelling the small lie like Miroku and Inuyasha had.

"Dinner is ready now. Is anyone hungry?"

Inuyasha sent her a grateful look and moved to sit beside her.

"More ramen?" He asked with an expectant grin on his face.

Kagome sighed and shook her head.

"Nuh uh. You already had one cup, and that was just to tide you over. Sango and I made _real _food, and you're going to eat it."

"Aw, c'mon Kagome…"

Instead of replying, she sent him a look that clearly said, 'I mean it, don't argue,' so he shut his mouth and quietly began to eat his noodles. Inukigo smiled and stifled a laugh at her brother's behaviour.

'_She's taming him fairly quickly._'

Inukigo plopped down at Inuyasha's side then leaned towards the large pot of stew that being kept warm on the fire. Her eyes closed as she took a deep sniff and leaned back.

"Mmm…it smells good. The two of you are such great cooks," she commented, directing it towards Kagome and Sango.

"It's mostly thanks to Kagome," Sango replied, "We used her mother's recipe, and some ingredients from her time."

Kagome blushed.

"You're still a better cook than I am, Sango-chan. I probably would have gotten Mama's recipe wrong if you hadn't helped me."

"Hey, I helped too!" Shippou cried indignantly.

Inukigo reached over to the kit that was sitting not far from her and ruffled his hair.

"I'm sorry Shippou, I know that you helped too."

Shippou tried to retain a tough look that had come to his face, and Inukigo drew back from him before he lost it.

"Well, enough of this sitting around," she commented out of nowhere, "I say we eat. What about the rest of you?"

Kagome and Sango smiled and agreed with her, as did Shippou and Miroku. Inuyasha sulked silently over the lack of ramen in the meal. After all stomachs were full and the area free of roaming demons, the group decided it would be best to turn in for the night so they would be well rested when it came time to move on in the morning.

* * *

Inukigo took guard duty upon herself, something that she had been doing more and more often as time passed. Inuyasha would complain about it occasionally, saying that she was going to wear herself out if she didn't get a decent night's sleep every now and then. Inukigo's reply had been, 

"How did you manage before I came along?" and, "I'll know when I need to take a break."

She had then softened her tone and continued with,

"I'll be fine, spend time with Kagome."

This told him more than anything that her actions were entirely for his benefit. He had given her a small smile and then went off to spend the night with Kagome in her sleeping bag.

That had been much earlier in the night. Now, Inukigo was the only one awake, sitting on a tree branch with her back to the trunk, watching over her sleeping companions and keeping her ears open to the forest around her in case of an attack. But all was peaceful for now, and Inukigo had a small, contented smile on her face as she thought back on the events of the day.

'_Aniue_,' she thought fondly. The idea that Sesshoumaru had once again accepted her was still so new that she could almost not believe it. Even after all day, she still felt like laughing and howling in her happiness. She had been restraining herself ever since morning to keep the others from worrying about her antics.

Her thoughts soon drifted off to Kouga, who's behaviour was still worrying her. Inuyasha and Miroku had suggested that he was nervous about Sesshoumaru's presence, and perhaps that was true, but she was sure that Inuyasha was hiding something. Unfortunately she couldn't prove anything, so she had to go along with their explanation. Sighing and hoping that the wolf demon would be alright when they next met, Inukigo decided that it was quiet enough that she could safely sleep, and was soon dozing lightly on her perch in the tree.

* * *

It was a day later, around noon, and the shard hunters were continuing their search for Naraku. They had no solid lead, just rumours that he may be in the direction they were heading, so they were in no real hurry and walked at a leisurely pace along the well traveled trails in the area. 

They were happily chatting amongst themselves, before Inukigo suddenly froze and sniffed, followed shortly by Inuyasha. Shippou took a little longer to pick up on it, but when he did his tail puffed up to twice its normal size, and from her perch on Sango's shoulder Kirara growled and her fur stood on end.

"What is it?" Kagome asked.

"I smell smoke," Inuyasha replied, "And blood. There's a village under attack up ahead."

"I smell a youkai," Inukigo added, "It smells familiar," she took another sniff, "Almost like that woman that attacked before…Koorimizu."

"Then that means Naraku is involved," Miroku commented, "We should hurry."

Inuyasha nodded in agreement and swept Kagome onto his back as Miroku and Sango mounted the transformed Kirara. Shippou clung tightly to Inukigo's shoulder, and the group was off.

It was a few minutes later before they reached the village, or what was left of it. Most of the huts were already on fire, some at the far end of the village were nothing more than ashes. There were no villagers in sight, and the group hoped that at least some of them had escaped. There were only a few huts that were left untouched, but it was then that they saw the demon.

She glided between the huts, and as they watched she reached out a hand and trailed it along the hut wall as she walked. Flame burst out from the wall and followed the path lay by her fingers as she continued on. Before she reached the next hut, she turned and laid eyes on the group of shard hunters and a small grin came to her face.

"I've been expecting you," she called out, "Though I thought you would arrive sooner. I've had to…entertain myself while I waited."

Inuyasha growled and let Kagome down from his back.

"Stay here, alright. She might be after you like the last one."

"Okay," Kagome agreed. She didn't like it, but knew that she wouldn't be of much help if it came to fighting up close.

"Kirara, you stay here and guard Kagome-chan," Sango said as she and Miroku got off of the large cat's back. Kirara growled her agreement and took up a position beside the miko.

Inukigo gave Shippou a smile and deposited him on Kirara's head without a word before turning back to her brother, Sango, and Miroku.

"Everyone ready?" she asked.

Inuyasha pulled out and transformed the Tetsusaiga without taking his eyes off the new enemy.

"Of course. Let's see if we can make this quick so we can work on putting out these fires."

The others nodded in agreement and charged towards Kachuu, who merely smiled and took a stance as she waited.

Inuyasha and Inukigo bounded out in front of Miroku and Sango. Inukigo reached her first and aimed a strike at the demon's face with claws outstretched. Kachuu leaned to avoid the blow, allowing Inukigo to run right by her. Inuyasha was directly behind his sister a swept the Tetsusaiga low in an attempt to hit the demoness' legs, but she leapt over it and him, and landed in front of Miroku and Sango. She unsheathed her sword in the blink of an eye, and Miroku just managed to get his staff in position to block the strike. Both struggled against the weight of the other, Miroku trying to buy time for Sango to attack the woman from behind.

"You've left yourself open," he commented when Sango was ready.

Kachuu smirked knowingly.

"Have I?"

Sango swung her Hiraikotsu horizontally, aiming for Kachuu's back, but the blow never connected. If Miroku hadn't seen it, he wouldn't have believed it. Kachuu was standing with a sword held one-handed preventing his attack, and now she held another at her back with her other hand, blocking Sango's Hiraikotsu. The speed of the movement had been blinding, and he barely saw when she moved her left hand and pulled a second short sword from the sheath at her back. It had been well concealed, the handle being what was once the closed end of the sheath. However, it wasn't just the speed that had both Miroku and Sango gaping.

'_What strength,_' Miroku thought, '_Not only is she keeping me at bay one-handed, but she also stopped Sango without even flinching. We could have a bit of a problem._'

Miroku wasn't given any more time to dwell on the demon's power, because she released a blast of fire from both hands, sending both he and Sango flying away from her. Kachuu then turned towards the hanyou siblings, standing tall with her swords blazing.

"I am Kachuu, I have complete control over fire. Your existence has been rather troublesome for Naraku-sama. I shall remedy that."

She charged towards Inukigo first, who was forced to draw her sword in order to block the lightning fast strikes of the short swords. Though Inukigo was still fairly inexperienced with the Touitsaiga, she managed a few shallow cuts on the fire demoness, but they did nothing to hinder Kachuu and Inukigo soon found that she was losing. It was then that Inuyasha rushed in in an attempt to get Kachuu off of his sister. She saw him coming and stepped back in order to avoid the punch, then ducked low and rammed her shoulder into his side, sending him back into Inukigo and both hanyous tumbled to the ground in a heap.

"To think Naraku-sama worries you will defeat him."

Kachuu raised both swords over Inuyasha and Inukigo and brought them down just seconds before Inuyasha found his footing, grabbed Inukigo around the waist, and jumped out of the way with her in his arms. He released her quickly and both were ready to continue the fight.

"He has good reason to be worried, and you should be too," Inukigo retorted.

Kachuu didn't seem impressed.

"That remains to be seen. Perhaps we shall see if you can back up your claims."

She was rushing at them again, but this time was interrupted.

"Hiraikotsu!"

Kachuu stopped in her tracks just as Sango's boomerang crossed her path, narrowly missing the fire demoness. Inuyasha and Inukigo took advantage of her hesitation, both rushing forward and bringing their swords down simultaneously towards Kachuu's head. She recovered in time to defend herself, and brought up both of her swords horizontally over her head. She struggled a little under the force of both swords, but managed a small smirk.

"Maybe this will prove to be a challenge after all."

Inukigo frowned and growled, then pulled back her sword in favour of lunging at Kachuu's face with her fist. Kachuu was faster though, and since she only needed one hand to hold off Inuyasha, her other was freed up to use against the other hanyou. With the short sword still in her grip, she held her hand out to Inukigo's face while she grinned.

"Boom."

Fire exploded from Kachuu's hand and the blast caught Inukigo directly in the face, sending her backwards with a hand covering her face. Inuyasha turned his attention to his sister as she staggered away.

"Inukigo!"

"You should never turn away from your opponent."

Inuyasha managed to look back just as a fist connected with his face, forcing him back a few steps. He shook his head to clear it, and he saw Kachuu preparing to kick him, but managed to strike out in time to push her away and jumped to put some distance between them. He landed near Inukigo, who was now kneeling on the ground with both hands to her face, her sword back in the sheath at her hip.

"Inukigo, you okay?"

She didn't reply for a moment, but when she did she still didn't look up at him.

"I think so, yeah."

"Inuyasha! Look out!"

The warning came from Kagome, and he looked up in time to see a fireball flying in his direction. He leapt to the side to avoid it, then jumped to dodge another that was hurled at him seconds later. Kachuu was about to throw a third, but it was not to be as an arrow flew from the small hill where the group had first entered the village and took the flame demoness in the shoulder. Kachuu screamed as the purifying energy started to work its way through her body, but she managed to reach back and rip out the arrow before it destroyed her. The damage was done however, as it was clear that her right arm was now useless and her stamina was nearly gone.

Kachuu turned towards Kagome, who held her bow with another arrow pulled back and ready. Her glare burned and flames began to form around her left hand.

"You bitch. How dare you strike me?"

She was about to hurl a huge ball of fire in Kagome's direction, but Sango's Hiraikotsu flew at her side, and this time she was unable to move from its path. The enormous boomerang took her in the side and sent her flying into one of the burning huts of the village. There was no sound but the crackling of the fire for a few moments, until Sango ventured to speak.

"Do you think she's dead?"

Miroku was standing beside her, and was the one to answer her question.

"I do not know. She was weakened by Kagome-sama's arrow, so perhaps the Hiraikotsu did finish her off-"

As he said this the hut which Kachuu had been thrown into exploded in a ball of flame which threatened to consume the entire village. Miroku managed to throw a barrier up around himself and Sango, and Kirara took flight with Kagome and Shippou, but Inuyasha and Inukigo were both caught in the blast.

When the dust cleared, the village was in complete ruins. Kagome remained in the air on Kirara's back, scanning the burning landscape. She spotted Sango and Miroku, who had both been protected by the barrier, and she even saw Kachuu, who stood panting in the middle of it all. But Inuyasha and Inukigo were nowhere to be seen. Kagome began to panic for fear of her love and his sister and called out frantically.

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha! Inukigo-chan!"

There was no response for a few very long minutes, but then near the far side of what used to be the village, some of the rubble began to shift unnoticed. It was Inukigo who sat up from the wreckage, with Inuyasha on top of her, unconscious. Her face had been burned badly by Kachuu's previous attack, which had also singed her eyebrows, eyelashes, and bangs. She had not been harmed in the bigger blast thanks to Inuyasha, who had rushed to her and covered them both as much as he could with his fire-rat haori, but he sported very bad burns on his hands and a few other places that hadn't been covered. His body had then shielded hers from the debris that flew from the demolished huts in the explosion, resulting in his current state of unconsciousness.

Inukigo sat there with Inuyasha leaning against her and checked him over as much as she could from her position. His hair was singed, and as she felt around his head for injuries she found the lump that was responsible for him being passed out. It was when she happened to look at the top of his head that she grew angry. She growled as she carefully touched the tips of her fingers to the back of one of his badly burned ears. Inuyasha whimpered at the contact and his ears flicked away, drawing another pain-filled noise from his throat. She continued to growl, then glared at the fire demoness who had yet to notice their presence. Inukigo carefully lay Inuyasha to one side, then stood up and unsheathed the Touitsaiga, pointing the sword directly at Kachuu.

"Ooi! Bitch!"

Kachuu turned wide eyes towards Inukigo, seemingly surprised that the hanyous had survived the blast. Inukigo didn't give her time to process the situation.

"I think that it's time I put out this fire."

Wasting no more time Inukigo lifted her sword over her head and brought it down with a cry.

"**_Kaze no Kizu_**!"

The blast of power rushed along the ground towards its target, extinguishing the fire as it went. Kachuu watched with horror as certain death raced towards her, but at the last second multiple blades of energy flew in from the side and dissipated the Kaze no Kizu, leaving Kachuu unharmed. Inukigo's head whipped in the direction the blades had come from, and saw a second demoness sitting on a large feather. She heard Sango and Miroku call out the name, 'Kagura' and deduced that this woman was also a spawn of Naraku since she had saved Kachuu. The two women were now arguing as the group of shard hunters stood by and watched.

"I will not retreat. They have not been defeated yet."

"Naraku ordered you to test them and you have served that purpose, but he wants you alive. He said you are free to do as you please until he summons you."

Kachuu looked like she was going to protest, but relented and climbed onto Kagura's feather.

"No matter," she said quietly, then continued in a voice loud enough for Inukigo to hear, "I will just proceed to take revenge for my sister's death, starting with the wolf that killed her."

Inukigo's eyes widened at the demoness' words, then ran a few steps towards them.

"Hey, what are you talking about?"

They ignored her and Kagura began to direct the feather into the sky.

"No, wait! Stop!" Inukigo called out after them, though she was still ignored. Growling, she swung her sword in their direction.

"Kaze no Kizu!"

Kagura sensed the attack coming and dodged it, then continued on until they were out of sight. Inukigo watched them go, panic rising in her chest.

'_Oh no, Kouga._'

A groan from behind her drew her attention, and she turned to see Inuyasha sitting up with a hand on the back of his head.

"Shit, what hit me?"

"A hut, or rather pieces of one," Inukigo told him as she sheathed her sword and walked back to him, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I think so," it was then that he looked up at his sister, "Kami, Inukigo. Are _you _okay?"

Inukigo put a hand to her face and winced.

"Yeah, it's not serious. More of an annoyance than anything else."

Inuyasha stood up beside her and inspected her face.

"It still looks pretty bad," he said, lifting a hand to her face. Inukigo caught his wrist before he touched her.

"So does this," she replied, motioning to his hands, "And so do your ears. I'll drop it if you will."

Inuyasha reluctantly sighed and nodded. Sango and Miroku walked up to their hanyou companions, and Kagome touched down on Kirara, though she was off as soon as the cat hit the ground and running towards Inuyasha. She hugged him around his waist tightly.

"Inuyasha, I was so worried when I couldn't see you. I'm so glad you're okay."

Inuyasha smiled and wrapped an arm around her.

"I'm alright Kagome. I'm sorry that you were worried," he then turned his attention back to his sister, "Did Kachuu escape?"

Inukigo gritted her teeth and nodded.

"Aa. She got away," she then looked at him pleadingly, "Please, Inuyasha, we have to go."

Inuyasha looked puzzled.

"Go where? What did I miss?"

"Inukigo used the Kaze no Kizu, but Kagura showed up and stopped it," Shippou replied from where he had set himself on Inukigo's shoulder.

"Yes, then she said that Kachuu had served her purpose. Naraku had ordered her to test us, and since she was finished she was allowed to do what she wanted," Sango added.

"I heard her say something about taking revenge for her sister's death. Is that what has you worried Inukigo?" Miroku asked.

"Yeah. I'm thinking that her sister was Koorimizu. She said she was going to start with the wolf. She's going to go after Kouga. We have to find him."

Inuyasha could plainly hear the dread in his sister's voice, and he was sure that if the smoke hadn't messed up his nose that he'd be able to smell it too.

"We can try Inukigo. But I'm not sure how well we'll be able to track him as we are."

Inukigo's face fell and she radiated worry. Surprisingly, it was Miroku who spoke to reassure her.

"Kachuu was badly injured by Kagome's sacred arrow, and that final blast weakened her as well. She will most likely wait until she has recovered somewhat before going after Kouga. That will give us some time."

Inukigo nodded in agreement.

"I guess so."

"Let's go and get everyone patched up. Then we can get moving," Kagome suggested.

Everyone agreed and they all moved off away from the smouldering remains of the village in search of a place for a temporary camp. However, Inukigo's mind was not on her current surroundings, nor the members of her group. Her thoughts were on her suitor, who was possibly in great danger.

'_I hope Miroku's right. Please be safe until we get there Kouga._'

* * *

Ha ha, cliff-hanger! Sorry, but how else am I going to keep you interested after all this time? (I'm evil :P) 

This would normally be where I reply to the reviews, but this time I'm just going to use it to apologize for my lack of updates in the last few months. My only excuses are that I have been highly unmotivated lately (I took too long of a break and lost the feel for the story. I think I might have it back now), and I've been busy with school.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed way back in August, and I hope that not too many of you gave up hope that this fic would ever be updated. I assure you, I'm not one to leave something unfinished. I'll get this story finished (eventually).

Shingetsu Inc. has been updated as well, for those of you who have been waiting for a new chapter in that.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

The group was forced to stop for a few hours to rest and heal their wounds. They were also forced to wait for Inuyasha's and Inukigo's noses to recover from the overwhelming scent of smoke they had encountered in the burning village. Once they started travelling they double-timed back to where they knew Kouga's scent trail would be. Inukigo wondered why they just couldn't go straight to the wolf den from where they were, seeing as that was where Kouga would be. Inuyasha's reply to that idea was that Kagome and Shippou were the only ones who had even been to the wolf den, and both confirmed that they couldn't remember it's location. Inuyasha also added that there wasn't much use in just heading towards the mountains and trying to sniff out the den, because the area was so thick with the smell of wolves it would be impossible to find.

They were only partway back to where they had split up with Kouga when nightfall came and they were forced to stop. Inukigo protested, but Miroku reassured her that Kachuu would need at least a few days to heal the wounds dealt to her, so they had plenty of time. Inukigo wasn't happy about it, but relented and settled down for the night with the rest of them.

They managed to find a trace of Kouga's scent a few hours after the sunrise the next day, but then things started to slow down. After about three days, Kouga's scent was starting to fade, often forcing Inuyasha and Inukigo to backtrack after losing the scent. After two days Inukigo's worry was beginning to grow. Both herself and Inuyasha were fully healed, but she had no idea how long it would take for Kachuu to heal her wounds. She hoped that they would have enough time to reach Kouga before Kachuu found him because she had no idea how he would fare against the fire demoness. It had taken all of them to injure Kachuu, so how would Kouga be able to stand up against her?

* * *

"Dammit," Kachuu cursed as she made her way slowly through the forest.

Kagura had left her to her own devices four days earlier, saying that Naraku hadn't ordered her to stick around. She had just pointed Kachuu in the direction of the wolf den and was on her way. Kachuu would have appreciated a ride to her destination, but she had to admit she probably wouldn't be able to stand up to anyone in her present condition. While she did have the use of her arm back, she wasn't completely healed, and it wouldn't be very smart to go up against the wolf demon unless she was at her best.

"Damn miko," she cursed again as she rested against a tree, "I'll be lucky if I've healed before I find the wolf's den. She'll pay for this, along with all the rest of them."

Kachuu moved away from the tree and began walking again, but only made it a few feet before the wind shifted suddenly, causing her to stop in her tracks. After a moment of looking to the sky curiously, she saw Kagura's tell-tale white feather. Seconds later, the wind witch landed before the fire demoness.

"Yo."

"Kagura," Kachuu stated, "Why are you here?"

Kagura pulled out her fan, and crossing her arms, tapped it against her shoulder in an annoyed sort of way.

"Naraku sent me. Seems that his plans for you have changed slightly."

Kachuu looked at the other woman in confusion for a moment, and was about to ask a question, but then her face took on a blank, lifeless look and her eyes seemed to stare straight ahead into nothing. Kagura found the whole display rather creepy. When Kachuu came out of her daze she began to speak.

"I am to kill Kouga, as well as the hanyous and humans on their way to his den to warn him of my arrival," she then focused her gaze more firmly on Kagura, "You have jewel shards for me."

Rolling her eyes, Kagura pulled the two jewel shards from inside her kimono and tossed them and Kachuu, who caught them easily. She stared at the small pink fragments that rested in her palm for a moment, when Kagura spoke.

"Those will heal your injuries, and should give you enough power to defeat the inu hanyous and the wolf demon. Naraku has given me other duties, and you already know where the wolf den is, so I'll be on my way."

With that she pulled a feather from her hair and floated up until she was out of Kachuu's sight. The fire demoness paid little attention to the other woman's departure, instead focusing on using the power of the Shikon shards to her advantage. She carefully placed shards on her forehead, then closed her eyes and released a deep breath as the power coursed through her body. When she opened her eyes again, they glowed a bright red with their own inner light. She stood there for a moment testing her shoulder and the rest of her body's movements, and was happy to learn that she was completely healed. A dark grin came to her face and in the next moment she started off running to where she knew the wolf den to be.

High in the air, Kagura had watched the entire scene and now shook her head.

'_The fool. She doesn't even realize how Naraku is using her. Two jewel shards will do nothing against Inuyasha, his sister, and Kouga, not to mention the miko, the demon slayer, and the monk. She's no more than a pawn, just like the rest of us, and he's using her to buy himself time to grow stronger._'

Giving an indifferent shrug, Kagura turned her feather in the direction on Naraku's current castle, for he had ordered her to return once she was finished with Kachuu.

'_What could that bastard want with me now?_'

* * *

Kouga sniffed the air carefully while standing outside the entrance of his pack's den. Since early that morning he had felt that something was amiss, but couldn't place it. Now it was near midday, and his fur bristled, his senses screaming 'danger!' Normally, he would avoid whatever was emitting such a dangerous aura, but it seemed to be heading straight for his den and there was no way he was going to abandon it just as he was beginning to rebuild what Naraku had taken away from him. The pack was nowhere near its former number, and there were more normal wolves than there were demons, but they were making progress and he wasn't going to back down.

"Kouga."

The wolf youkai's attention was drawn to the owner of the new voice.

"Ginta," he replied, "You feel it as well?"

"Aa, the other wolves do too. They're getting restless. The ones that just came back from patrol are the worst. They say that they could smell the fires of hell coming for them."

"Fires of hell?" Kouga asked, "What did they mean?"

"I picked up a wiff of it myself," Ginta replied, "Whatever it is that's coming this way smells of brimstone."

Kouga was silent for a moment as he took Ginta's words into consideration.

"Take Hakkaku, and start moving the pack away from the den. Chances are that it's coming for me anyway, no use in endangering everyone."

"You want to face it alone?" Ginta asked with concern.

"It's my duty isn't it? I will protect my pack at all costs. You should know that by now…" he trailed off, then turned as he curiously sniffed the air.

"Kouga?"

Ginta's voice was ignored as he registered the scent that had found it's way to his nose.

"Inukigo?"

A few moments later, that very person emerged from the tree-line, the rest of her companions following closely behind her, and ran straight for Kouga. He thought that she would stop before she reached him, but in a very forward display she jumped when she got close and wrapped her arms around his neck. Kouga's arms came around her waist to steady her, and he looked at her in surprise. He looked in the direction that she had come from and saw the rest of her group had hung back, then glanced over at Ginta who was still standing rather close to his side. All of them were staring rather intently, and Kouga found his cheeks warming with a light blush. Putting aside his tiny amount of embarrassment, Kouga once again looked back down at the woman in his arms.

"Inukigo, what are you doing here?"

She looked up at him, then seemed to realize the position that she had put herself in and removed her arms, stepping back from him slightly. She blushed fiercely when it struck her that her brother, her friends, and most of the wolf pack had seen her pounce on Kouga. Fighting to hide her embarrassment, she focused on answering his question.

"About four days ago, we fought with a detachment of Naraku, called Kachuu. She escaped, but I heard her say that she was going to come for you. She sort of gave us a hard time, so I was worried about how you would do against her," her voice then softened as she continued, "I'm glad that we made it here first."

Kouga smiled at her for a moment, but then his expression turned grim.

"I doubt you've beaten her by much. All day I've been able to sense something coming, and the wolves have smelled it as well. They're starting to get restless. And if it's one of Naraku's demons, that just makes things worse."

Inuyasha and the rest of the group approached the two, now looking worried. At Inukigo's questioning look, Kagome explained.

"I can sense jewel shards heading this way. There's no way to know for sure, but there's a good chance that it's Kachuu."

Miroku elaborated on Kagome's theory.

"Naraku probably gave them to her to speed up her recovery, but it is likely that he also knows that we were on our way here to warn Kouga. The power from the shards will make things a little harder for us."

Inuyasha scoffed and folded his arms over his chest.

"Keh! As if any demon spawn of Naraku could beat us."

"Inuyasha," Kagome scolded, "Try to take this a little more seriously."

"Feh."

"Heh," Kouga laughed, "For once you've got something right, inukuro," he said, surprising everyone. Kouga seemed to take no notice of their expressions and turned to Ginta, who had been joined by Hakkaku during the conversation, "The two of you move the pack away from here. You don't have to worry, I'm not going to be on my own now."

The two wolf demons nodded and took off, though they whispered quietly to each other as they ran.

"Did you see that?" Ginta asked, referring to Inukigo's rather enthusiastic greeting.

"Yeah," Hakkaku replied, "Way different from their first meeting," he said, remembering when Kouga had kicked Inukigo into a tree.

"I'll say. They seem to have gotten very close."

"Kouga will probably ask her to be his mate soon," Hakkaku agreed, though his tone was solemn, "They seem like a good match, but the tribe elders still won't like it. They'll make more than their fair share of trouble."

Ginta nodded, then the two were silent as they went about rounding up the pack and moving everyone to a safer location.

"Shippou-chan," Kagome said softly, "Maybe you should go with the wolves to a safe place."

"Aw, do I have to Kagome?" the kit pouted from his perch on her shoulder.

"This fight will be dangerous Shippou-chan. I don't want you anywhere near it if I can help it."

Shippou looked around support from one of his other companions, but it seemed that everyone agreed with Kagome. Even Inukigo shook her head when he looked her way. Defeated, he sighed and jumped down from her shoulder.

"Alright, Kagome."

Kagome smiled and knelt down to ruffle his hair.

"Behave yourself, okay Shippou-chan?"

He nodded, then bounded off towards the two wolves that had been there moments before.

Kouga watched as his pack moved away from the den, then turned back to the group beside him.

"So, now what? Should we stay here and wait, or go and face this Kachuu head on? Personally, I would rather that my den not be damaged."

The others seemed to agree.

"It is likely that this area would receive a large amount of damage," Sango pointed out, "The village where we fought her before was completely destroyed."

"Alright, then we'll go to her. Let's get moving so we can keep the fight as far away from here as possible."

With a plan formulated, the group headed off towards the threat that awaited them. Inukigo and Kouga ran in front, followed by Inuyasha with Kagome on his back, and Miroku and Sango riding on Kirara brought up the rear. They moved quickly, hoping to keep Kachuu as far away from the den as possible. They hadn't been running very long when Inukigo put her nose to the air and shivered.

"I smell brimstone."

Kouga heard her comment.

"Yeah, the wolves on patrol picked it up too. They thought that the fires of hell were coming for them."

"Kachuu didn't smell like this before. Now that she has Shikon shards, she very well could be able to call up the fires of hell."

Kouga shivered, unnerved by her words. Again he got the feeling that he should be avoiding something this dangerous, but one look to his side squelched the feeling. This demon was coming for him, so there was no point in trying to avoid her, and his woman was beside him, ready to run into battle. There was no way that he was going to let her fight and not be there to protect her now that he could help it. If he had his way, Kachuu wouldn't be touching Inukigo at all.

After a few more minutes of running and Inuyasha pulled up to run even with his sister.

"The scent is getting strong. She's around here somewhere."

Inukigo nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. We should probably stop so we can find out exactly where she is before we run right into her. If she does know that all of us are with Kouga, then she might be waiting-" she cut off abruptly and her ears perked along with those of every other demon present.

"Move!"

The three running on the ground managed to jump aside just as a wave of flames, nearly ten feet across, roared through the trees towards them. The fire burned so hot that it didn't even get the chance to spread to the surrounding forest. It burned itself out almost instantly, destroying the trees it swept through in seconds.

And at the head of the burnt out path was Kachuu, standing proudly with a sword in her right hand, the arm stretched out at her side after executing a wide swing. Flames still licked the blade and a devilish smile graced her face.

"It took you so long to arrive. I was beginning to get tired of waiting for you all."

'_Damn,_' Inukigo thought, '_She did know that we were coming._'

"Hey, bitch," she called out, drawing her sword and pointing it at Kachuu, "Long time no see. You ran out before we could finish our last battle. Maybe those jewel shards will give you enough courage to see things to the end this time."

Kachuu's smile faded and was replaced by a heavy frown.

"They have given me far more than courage. The power from these shards will be more than enough to defeat all of you."

"We'll see," Kouga said as he moved to stand beside Inukigo, "Though I'm going to make you pay for planning to challenge me at my den and endanger my pack."

"Really?" she questioned, her smile returning.

She calmly reached back with her left hand and pulled out her second sword, holding both out at her sides.

"You all managed to evade my first fire blade, but let's see how well you fare against these."

Kachuu began slashing quickly at the air, each swing producing a blade of fire, similar to the first she had shot out, but these were smaller and faster than the last one had been. Not anticipating the speed of the attacks, Inuyasha and Inukigo sported a few nicks before they were able to readily dodge the blades. Kouga's shards granted him the speed to keep ahead of the attacks, and Kirara managed to avoid them by keeping airborne. After a few moments it was clear that the blades were meant to kept them at a distance and tire them out in anticipation for a larger attack. Inukigo scowled, then got an idea as she glanced at a bloody gash on her upper arm. Digging her claws into the cut with a wince, she called out to her brother.

"Inuyasha!"

When he looked her way, she held up her bloodied claws and saw him nod when he caught on to her plan. He followed suit and held up a bloody hand as well, then they called out in unison.

"Hijin Kessou!"

The combined Blades of Blood attacks cut through Kachuu's fire blades and went straight through to the fire demon. She was surprised when she saw the attack coming her way and was forced to stop for moment as she jumped back out of the way. The delay gave Kouga just enough of an opening that he was able to jump in close and kick the sword out of her left hand. Kachuu snarled and hurled a fireball at him, but he dodged it easily and proceeded to jump on her sword, then yanked up on the handle, snapping the blade in half.

Kachuu's eyes burned with rage at the loss of her sword.

"Damn you, wolf!"

Kouga smirked at her over his shoulder, but it was gone in an instant when he was forced to dodge a flurry of fireballs. Taking advantage of Kachuu's attention being directed elsewhere, Inuyasha gave Kagome over to Kirara as Sango and Miroku took to the ground, giving the fire cat a firm look that meant he was trusting her with his future mate's safety. Kirara gave what amounted to an affirmative nod and took once again to the sky.

Kouga was still drawing all of Kachuu's attention, giving the others the time to surround the fire demoness. Unfortunately, when the first attack was thrown, it was apparent that Kachuu was well aware of anything coming her way. Miroku was the first to give it a try, throwing a number of ofudas in her direction. Kachuu simply glanced over her shoulder when the charms got close and swept her arm in a wide arc, causing each piece of paper to burst into flames. All the while she kept up her attack on Kouga.

Sango was next.

"Hiraikotsu!"

The boomerang flew towards its target with blazing speed, but Kachuu saw that coming as well and managed to jump over the flying bone as it made its pass. This did however force her to stop throwing fireballs for a moment. Inuyasha jumped up at her while she was still in the air, his sword poised to cut her in half. Kachuu managed to block it, and the two struggled for a moment before pushing off and jumping away. Inukigo was there when Kachuu touched down and was ready for her.

"Kaze no Kizu!"

The blades of power tore through the ground towards Kachuu, and the fire demoness barely managed to avoid the attack. As it was, she had a few scattered cuts on her left side when the dust settled.

Kachuu was seething, and flames were visible around her body. When she attacked again no one was prepared for it. She raised her palms to the sky, and her power shot up almost like a firework, but then it exploded and the resulting balls of fire rained down in a shower. Miroku managed to get a barrier up around himself and Sango, since neither would have been able to outrun the attack. Kagome and Kirara were safe high above in the air. The other three demons however were running madly trying to keep out of the path of the fire raining down on them. Inuyasha and Inukigo had even put away their swords in favour of greater manoeuvrability.

They couldn't keep it up forever, and it was Inukigo who ended up taking the first hit. One the fireballs took her in the right shoulder, and though she was protected greatly by the fire rat fur she was wearing, the force of it was enough to knock her to her hands and knees. The pause was all that Kachuu needed, and instantly all of her attack was focused on the fallen half demon. Both Inuyasha and Kouga saw what was about to happen, but neither could stop it and called out to her in a panic.

"Inukigo!"

"Watch out!"

Inukigo looked up over her shoulder and her eyes widened at what she saw coming at her. She had only enough time to drop flat to the ground and cover her head before her back was bombarded by the fire raining down from the sky. After a few very long seconds, Kachuu held off on her attack long enough for the dust to settle. What appeared was a battered and burned Inukigo, who was still for a moment, but then groaned and attempted to get her hands under herself to get up.

Kachuu frowned, apparently disappointed that Inukigo had survived the attack. She seemed prepared to fix that, and began gathering her energy over her head in a very large ball of fire. Inuyasha saw what she was getting ready to throw at his sister and took off in her direction, determined to stop her. He pulled out Tetsusaiga and was about to call upon the Wound of Wind, but Kachuu finished building power sooner than he hoped and threw the fireball in Inukigo's direction. He could only watch with wide eyes as it struck the ground right where Inukigo had been laying. His grip on Tetsusaiga tightened until his knuckles were white as he waited for the dust to clear. When it did, he saw something that he hadn't expected to see.

Inukigo lay curled up on her side with her arms protecting her head. She had felt the attack coming her way, and had even felt it hit the ground around her. But as her mind caught up with what was going on, she realized that she herself had not been struck by the blast. Cracking her eyes open slowly, Inukigo peered up carefully, but then her eyes widened in shock and her arms dropped from shielding her head.

"K-Kouga…?" she said softly.

The wolf demon smiled down at her but his eyes clearly displayed the pain he felt. He was on his hands and knees above her, his body having completely shielded her own.

"Hey, you okay?"

Inukigo could only nod as she processed what had just happened.

"Good."

"G-good?" she almost cried, "B-baka! Why did you do that? I'm wearing fire rat fur! I wouldn't have been hurt that badly! Now you've gone and hurt yourself," she said in a panic as she stretched out and rolled onto her back.

Kouga continued to smile but a sweat broke out on his brow from the strain of keeping his body up.

"I know. But I can't go letting you get hurt if I can help it, now can I?"

"I-Idiot," Inukigo whimpered.

Kouga gave a short laugh, then his eyes rolled shut and he collapsed on top of Inukigo. Inukigo grasped his arms and tried to shake him awake.

"Kouga! Kouga!" she cried out desperately.

It took her a moment to feel his even breathing on her neck and she calmed down. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and cradled his face to hers. She kept her eyes shut tightly to fight back tears.

"Stupid idiot," she whispered softly.

Kachuu glared at the scene, still disappointed that her targets were alive. She was about to build up another attack, but was interrupted by a red clad figure wielding a large sword standing in her path.

"Do you really think that you can stop me, half demon?"

Inuyasha snarled.

"Why don't you finish and we'll see."

"As you wish. You make my job easy for me."

Inuyasha waited as Kachuu began gathering energy once again, and when she released it in his direction he smirked.

"Bakuryuuha!"

Tetsusaiga cut into the fireball and almost instantly it was transformed into numerous fiery twisters, and all of them shot straight at Kachuu. The fire demoness' eyes widened in horror.

"W-what? NO!"

She could do nothing as her own attack was turned against her and she was engulfed by the flaming tornados. When the dust settled, there was nothing left.

Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief and sheathed the Tetsusaiga. Kirara landed close by, and Kagome hopped off and ran to him.

"Are you okay, Inuyasha?"

"Yeah," he saw Miroku and Sango approaching them, "Why don't you go and get the jewel shards. I'll check on Inukigo and Kouga."

Kagome had seen what had happened from the air and knew that he was worried. She nodded and moved towards where Kachuu had last been standing. Inuyasha went off towards his sister and Kouga.

Inukigo and slid Kouga off and was now sitting up beside him.

"Hey," Inuyasha called, catching her attention, "Are you alright?"

Inukigo looked at him with sad eyes.

"Mostly. It's nothing serious," she replied, then looked back down at Kouga.

Inuyasha crouched down beside her.

"Is he okay?"

She shook her head.

"He'll be alright soon," he tried to reassure her, and she nodded but still looked downtrodden, "Inukigo, he chose to protect you. It's not your fault."

"How can it not be?" She protested weakly, "I needed to be protected and he got hurt because of it. It is my fault."

Inuyasha sighed and put an arm around her.

"I understand how he feels," he said.

Inukigo looked up at him.

"What?"

"What do you think I feel if I think Kagome is about to be hurt? I almost panic and force myself to give everything I have to keep her safe. That's exactly how he felt when he saw that attack heading for you."

Inukigo nodded and lowered her head. Inuyasha stood and pulled her to her feet.

"We'll get him back to his den and you can take care of him okay? Think you can run?"

She took a moment to stretch her legs.

"Yeah."

"Okay, help me get Kouga up on my back. I'll carry him and Kagome can ride with Miroku and Sango."

Inukigo did as he said and the two of them walked back to their companions. They had all witnessed Inuyasha voluntarily lifting Kouga on to his back and just managed to keep their shock hidden.

"Is Kouga alright?" Miroku was the first to ask.

"He will be. Let's get him back to the den before I start to stink of wolf."

They relaxed at the very Inuyasha-like reply. Kagome climbed onto Kirara with Miroku and Sango without needing to be told, and together the group headed back towards the wolf den.

* * *

It's a little bit later than I said it would be in the last chapter of Shingetsu Inc. (which I am also working on updating), but I still managed to get it out much sooner than last time. I've got the next chapter pretty much planned out, so hopefully I'll be able to get it written within a week or two. I just want to give you a little heads up for the next chapter, there will be long overdue fluff! That's all you're getting. About posting pics on Otaku…oops…I've pretty much completely forgotten about that site…I'll see what I can do about that. Oh, and because I forgot to mention these things before, Koorimizu means 'ice water' and Kachuu means 'in the fire/flames.'

Since there aren't really any questions to be answered in the reviews, I'll just say a big thank you to everyone who reviewed last time on both sites, and I hope that I get plenty more this time :P Until next time!


	18. Chapter 18

AN: Lime at the end of this chapter, just thought I'd give everyone fair warning.

* * *

**  
Chapter 18**

After making it back to the wolf den, Kagome led Inuyasha and Inukigo to Kouga's sleeping area, where, with some help from Inukigo, Inuyasha managed to get the wolf youkai off his back and gently lay him out on his stomach. Inukigo began to tend to Kouga, and though Kagome and Sango offered to help her, she insisted that they leave it to her. The girls reluctantly agreed, but Kagome left her first aid kit before she and Sango moved away to get the group settled in. It looked like they were going to be there awhile.

Inuyasha informed the rest of the group that he was going to get the wolf pack, since the danger had passed. When he returned with all of the wolves and Shippou in tow, Inukigo was still working at treating the burns on Kouga's back, and the others were gathered around a fire they had started in the centre of the den. Ginta and Hakkaku were two of the first to enter behind him, and both took notice of their leader instantly.

"Kouga!"

They were about to run towards him, and their cry had drawn the attention of the rest of the wolves, but Inuyasha held an arm out to block their path. They pinned him with a astonished glare.

"What are you doing?"

"Why won't you allow us to tend to our leader?"

The rest of the pack echoed their questions and began to press forward menacingly. Inuyasha levelled them all with a glare of his own.

"Inukigo is tending to him just fine. You will leave this to her."

The wolves began to argue about leaving the well being of their leader in the hands of a hanyou, but Inuyasha growled and spoke in low tones to the two at the front of the pack.

"Listen, I know that the two of you know what's going on between them. Inukigo feels responsible for what's happened, and she needs to take care of him for her own sake."

Ginta and Hakkaku looked at each other the back at Inuyasha with a look of understanding.

"What happened?"

"The demon we were fighting tried to attack Inukigo while she was down, but Kouga jumped in front of the blast."

The two wolves nodded, then turned to the rest of the pack.

"Everyone get back to your duties. Kouga is being taken care of, we have no need to worry."

The wolves were just short of outraged at the command, some of them protesting about Kouga being left in Inukigo's care, others speculating on the scene they had witnessed earlier when Inukigo had first arrived. However, Ginta and Hakkaku quickly took charge.

"We are Kouga's second and third in command," Ginta yelled. Hakkaku followed up the statement.

"With Kouga in his present condition, we are in charge. You will do as we say. Now, get back to your duties, or you will be answering to Kouga when he has recovered."

That got the wolves moving, though they grumbled as they went about their different jobs. Inuyasha gave the two remaining wolves a smirk and an impressed look.

"Never thought that you two would be all that great at keeping order."

They both smiled at him as Ginta answered.

"Kouga didn't make us his second and third for nothing."

Inuyasha nodded, then walked off towards his intended mate. The den was relatively peaceful after that. The wolves went about their business and caused no more trouble for Inukigo, not that she had noticed their earlier protests.

A few hours passed, and Inukigo had remained at Kouga's side ever since she had finished treating his injuries. She was absentmindedly running a hand over his unbound hair when he finally groaned and came to. Inukigo's hand stilled and she leaned down a little to get a better look at his face.

"Kouga? Are you awake?"

Kouga's eyes slowly opened wider, and the first things that he focused on were Inukigo's golden eyes staring straight at him.

"Inu…kigo. Where are we?"

"We're back at the den. How are you feeling?"

"Stiff," he tried to shift and grunted, "And my back's been better."

He made to sit up and Inukigo moved to help him. Kouga's movement had attracted the attention of the pack members currently in the den, and they all rushed towards their leader. Kouga and Inukigo looked up at their audience in surprise.

"Kouga, allow us to take you out of the hands of this…half breed," one of them spoke up.

Inukigo flinched at the tone of his voice.

"Yes, these two," another said, pointing to Ginta and Hakkaku, "Ordered us away. Perhaps you can now bring them to their senses."

Kouga frowned and boldly wrapped an arm around Inukigo's waist, drawing her in close to his body. Inukigo looked at him with wide eyes, but stayed silent as he spoke.

"Ginta and Hakkaku did what I expect of them. I am perfectly fine in the hands of this woman," his frown turned to a glare, and his voice was a growl, as though daring them to argue with him, "_My _woman. I'm sure that there are no further complaints."

The wolves seemed shocked by his declaration, and the dark tone of his voice had them nodding and backing away to get back to whatever they were doing. Kouga sighed and ran a hand through his hair, then paused and looked down at the woman staring up at him with wide eyes.

"What?"

"You…you just…"

Kouga smirked at her.

"I called you my woman. Is that a problem?"

Inukigo's mouth worked for a moment but no words came out. In the end she just settled for shaking her head. Kouga's smirk softened to a smile, but the two were interrupted by someone clearing their throat. They both looked up to see Inuyasha, Kagome, and Shippou peering down at them. Inuyasha looked bored, Kagome and Shippou were giggling behind their hands. Inukigo blushed and lowered her eyes, which reminded her that she was pressed up against Kouga's bare chest and she blushed even harder.

'_What's wrong with me? I keep making a fool of myself._'

Inuyasha smirked at his sister's reaction, but then turned the look on Kouga.

"Still kickin' huh, wolf?"

Kouga returned the smirk.

"Of course. I'm not going out that easily."

Kagome leaned out around Inuyasha's body.

"Are you two hungry? There's some lunch left over if you want it."

Kouga looked down at Inukigo curiously, then back up at Kagome.

"Yeah, sure Kagome."

Kagome nodded, then took Inuyasha's arm and hauled him away.

"You didn't eat?"

Inukigo looked up at Kouga when she heard the question.

"I was taking care of you, I didn't want anything."

"It's not that bad, you could have gone and eaten with the rest of them."

Inukigo frowned and raised a hand behind Kouga's back then smacked it firmly against his skin, knowing that it would hurt but wouldn't do him any damage. As expected, Kouga's entire body jerked and he forced himself to not release a shocked cry. He glared down at Inukigo.

"Damn it, woman-"

"It was that bad," she cut in, "And I didn't want anything. I was too nervous to be hungry."

Kouga's expression softened.

"You were that worried?" he asked, tilting his head to one side.

"Of course," she replied, a little more harshly then she intended. She lowered her eyes and whispered softly, "And it was my fault that you were hurt, so of course I had to take care of you."

Kouga frowned and grasped her chin to make her face him.

"Do not blame yourself for my injuries, do you hear me?"

"But-"

Kouga lightly shook her once.

"No buts. I wasn't going to let you get hurt if I was right there and could prevent it. Do you really think that I would have been able to stand by and do nothing?"

Inukigo thought on it for a moment and knew that the answer was no. She also knew that she would have done the same if she had been in Kouga's position.

"Sorry," she said quietly, averting her eyes as a blush crept up her face, "Thank you, for protecting me."

Kouga smiled at her bashfulness, not sure if it was from needing to be protected or being so close to him while in plain sight of everyone in the den. He leaned down and whispered directly into her ear.

"Thank you for taking care of me."

Inukigo's ear flicked, but Kouga didn't move away.

"You're welcome," she replied.

Kouga chuckled, and spotted Kagome coming towards them over Inukigo's head.

"I need to talk to you a little later. Privately, okay?" he whispered.

He was sure that she shivered and felt her nod. Slowly, he released her and moved away, just as Kagome arrived with their food.

"Here you go, you two. If you want seconds let me know."

"Sure thing, Kagome," Kouga replied, digging into his meal.

"Thanks, Kagome," Inukigo replied.

Kagome smiled and gave Inukigo a wink before she turned around, showing that she had noticed how close the two had been just moments before. Inukigo gave herself a mental pat on the back when her face retained it's normal colouration.

The two ate in silence for a time, before Inukigo noticed that much of the pack's attention was on her, and that none of their looks seemed all that friendly. She sighed quietly, knowing that she should have expected the animosity from a group of full demons.

Kouga heard her sigh and noticed that she wasn't really eating anymore.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Inukigo let her gaze wander over the hateful glares being directed at her from the wolf youkai, then turned her eyes up to meet Kouga's.

"They don't seem to like me all that much," she said.

"What?" Kouga asked curiously. When her gaze slid out towards the rest of the den, he followed it and saw the hostile looks that most of the pack was sending her way. A growl welled up in his throat and he shot them all a look of his own that had them hurrying to turn around and mind their own business.

"Maybe I should go and sit with the others for awhile. I'm just stressing the pack out by being so close to you."

Inukigo made to stand up, but Kouga grabbed her arm and pulled her over onto his lap and up against his chest. Inukigo made to push away, but Kouga growled and his arm tightened around her waist.

"Ignore them. I've already announced you as my woman, so it won't matter what you do; they'll be pissed whether you're next to me or not."

Inukigo frowned and looked up at him, only to see that he wasn't looking at her at all, rather he was staring at his pack over her shoulder, daring them to show any signs of protest. Inukigo growled and when she spoke it was a hissed whisper.

"Stop making a show of me."

That made Kouga turn his attention to her, and he gave her a frown of his own.

"I have to show them that I'm the leader here. They have no right to complain about my choices unless it endangers the safety of the pack. I don't think that you're much of a danger to them, so they shouldn't be going against my orders."

Inukigo looked away sharply.

"Baka. It has nothing to do with me being a danger to the them."

Kouga sighed and began rubbing his hand up and down her back.

"I know. They're prejudice because you're a hanyou. But given the position that I've put you in, they should be keeping those feelings to themselves. So, I can look at it as them disobeying my orders."

Inukigo didn't look at him, but laid her head on his shoulder.

"I want to go sit with my brother for awhile."

Kouga's face fell a little, but he pulled back and allowed her to get up from his lap.

"I still want to talk to you later," he said before she had the chance to turn around and leave.

Inukigo stopped for a moment, then nodded and walked away. Upon reaching her group, all of which looked up in confusion when she appeared, she flopped down beside Inuyasha and sighed miserably. Shippou responded to her distress and climbed into her lap, where Inukigo began to busy herself with petting his hair.

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"I feel like I've been put on display," she half groaned.

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked.

"Almost the entire wolf pack has been sending me pretty hard looks ever since Kouga called me his woman."

"Did Kouga do anything about it?" Inuyasha asked with a frown.

Inukigo snorted.

"Oh, he did something alright. He pulled me down on his lap and used me to exert his authority over them," she sighed and her expression grew depressed, "I should have known to expect this kind of reaction from a bunch of full-blooded demons. I don't know what will happen if I stay here much longer."

"Kouga would never let them harm you, though I'm sure you would be able to handle them on your own," Sango reassured.

"I know. That's not what I mean. I feel like I'm invading their home, so I'm making this hard on them, and," she lowered her voice so it wouldn't carry to the ears of the wolves, "it's supposed to be rather bright tomorrow night, right?"

The others caught on right away.

'_The full moon…Inukigo's human night._'

"As for the wolves, just ignore them. Kouga made a show of your status in front of them, and they don't have any right to complain about his personal choices. And the other thing…well we could always just leave before then."

Inukigo nodded and began chewing on her lip. Inuyasha noticed the rarely used nervous habit.

"What is it?" he asked, knowing that she wanted to say something.

"I think…that I want to let Kouga know."

Inuyasha's eyes widened.

"You sure?"

"I don't know. But I want to stick around until I make up my mind. And Kouga said that he wanted to talk to me privately later, so I can't leave just yet."

No one noticed perverted look on Miroku's face until he spoke.

"'Privately?' I wonder…"

"You will wonder nothing monk. Not another word. I don't want to know what perverted images your mind is coming up with."

The grin stayed plastered on his face despite the warning.

"I was just thinking about what sorts of things Kouga could be planning for our innocent Inukigo that would require privacy."

Inukigo's face flushed bright red, and the only warning that Miroku got that his life was in danger was the roar of his name before Inukigo flew over the fire towards him. He barely managed to roll out of the way and grabbed his staff in order to defend himself against Inukigo's very angry fists.

"Um…some help?" he pleaded, glancing at the rest of his companions.

Sango snorted.

"I don't think so, Houshi-sama. You brought this on yourself."

The three adults ignored Miroku's cries for help, while Shippou and Kirara watched in amusement.

"What's going on?" Kouga asked as he approached the group, having been drawn by the commotion.

"Just Miroku being Miroku," Kagome sighed.

Kouga looked confused, so Shippou explained

"Miroku said some stuff that he shouldn't have, and got Inukigo embarrassed. Believe me, you don't want to know."

Kouga raised an eyebrow, but took the kit's advice.

"Itai!"

Everyone looked up to see Miroku covering his head and Inukigo glowering at him.

"Really, I meant no offence, Inukigo-"

"Not another word," Inukigo warned, raising a fist at him, "Unless you want me to give you a matching set…"

The threat hung in the air, and Miroku hurriedly shook his head and held his hands up defensively.

"Some advice," Inuyasha whispered to the wolf demon standing behind him, "Never piss her off to that point. You'll live longer."

Kouga gulped and nodded.

While Inukigo was still occupied with Miroku, Inuyasha took the opportunity to turn around and look up at Kouga.

"Your wolves have been giving her a hard time."

"I know," Kouga sighed as he sat down, "I'm taking care of it. Since I announced her as my woman, she's part of my personal life, and the pack as no say in my personal life. So, really, they shouldn't be treating her this way. But it's not that simple. I can't force the pack to accept her, she's going to have to prove herself to them."

"What can she do?" Inuyasha asked. Inukigo had stopped yelling at Miroku and both were now listening to the conversation.

"Short of killing one of them, which I won't be allowing since that would be endangering one of my pack members, I don't know."

Inukigo's ears drooped at the information. Kouga laid eyes on her and remembered another reason why he had ventured towards them.

"Come with me," he said, grabbing Inukigo's wrist and pulling her along behind him.

"W-what?" she stuttered as she stumbled along and tried to dig her heels in, but to no avail.

"I changed my mind," Kouga said over his shoulder, "I want to talk to you now."

"Wait a minute! Hey!" Inukigo cried out as she struggled against his grip, but he ignored her and kept walking. He led her through the waterfall at the cave entrance and was gone.

Most everyone in the den had watched the entire display with wide eyes.

"Well," Sango said after a moment, "That was…abrupt."

"No kidding," Kagome agreed.

"Will Inukigo be okay?" Shippou asked.

"She'll be fine, runt," Inuyasha replied.

"You sure?"

"Yup," he said curtly, signalling that the conversation was over.

'_Sesshoumaru must have said yes then. You better not screw this up you stupid wolf. If Inukigo comes back here upset, you'll be paying for it._'

* * *

"Kouga, where are we going?" Inukigo asked impatiently.

"Hold on will you. We're almost there."

Inukigo huffed from her position on Kouga's shoulder. After exiting the cave, he had thrown her up to her current perch and took off without a word as to what their destination would be. She had tried to get him to put her down, but he had ignored her efforts completely, save for tightening his grip on her legs.

Inukigo was surprised when Kouga suddenly came to a stop and set her on her feet. Looking around she had to admire the location that he had chosen for their talk. A small pool of water, supplied by it's own waterfall, was next to a cliff face and completely enclosed by trees. The area was completely secure, and the sunlight peeking through the canopy of leaves gave it a very relaxing atmosphere.

"I don't think anyone else in the den knows about this place. It's hard to find spots like this around here."

Inukigo nodded to let him know that she heard him as she continued looking around.

"What did you want to talk about, Kouga?" she asked.

"Come over here," he called to her as he sat down with his back to a tree.

Inukigo complied and sat down beside him, her cheeks only slightly tinged pink when he wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her up against his chest.

"How long have we been courting now?" he asked, resting his head against hers. He was a bit peeved when he found that her hair was pulled back too tightly to bury his face in it. He'd fix that in a minute.

"About three weeks…why?" she asked, relaxing against him.

"Hmm…I needed to ask you something," he said, breathing over her neck as he spoke.

"What is it?" Inukigo asked, her eyes growing heavy lidded.

"Be my mate?" he whispered in her ear.

Inukigo's eyes snapped open and she turned around so that she was kneeling beside him.

"W-what?"

"Bear my mark?" he asked, reaching up with one hand to remove the tie that held her hair back.

Inukigo's mouth worked for a few moments, then closed as her face grew thoughtful.

'_Am I really ready for this? I care about him, a lot, and I guess that I do want to be his mate eventually. And it's not like this part of the courtship has to be rushed…I can carry his mark until we're ready to really become mates._'

While Inukigo was having her inner monologue, Kouga was growing more and more nervous. Inukigo's silence was unnerving him.

'_Why isn't she answering? Gods, please don't let me have scared her off._'

Just before Kouga was about to have a panic attack, Inukigo made up her mind and climbed into his lap. She looked to be slightly embarrassed by her actions, and wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Yes."

When he heard that one word, Kouga thought he was imagining things.

"What?"

Inukigo looked up at him with a smile on her face.

"I said 'yes.' I'll take your mark Kouga."

It took only a second for her words to sink in, then his face split into a huge grin and he kissed her full on the mouth. Inukigo was too shocked to respond and when it was over she was left speechless. Kouga was still grinning when she gathered her bearings and she lowered her eyes again as she began playing with few strands of hair that had fallen over his shoulders.

"Wolves mark differently than dog demons, right?" she asked, looking up again slightly to see Kouga nod, "I don't know how…"

Kouga smiled warmly and grasped her arms.

"Don't worry, just leave it to me."

He began turning her so that she ended up sitting between his legs with her back pressed tightly against his chest. Kouga's arms came around her waist and his chin rested on her shoulder.

"For wolf demons, the male does not receive a mark until the mating ceremony. Any mark put on me before then would mean something different than it would mean for a male dog demon."

"What would it mean?"

"That I took an unwilling partner," Kouga explained.

"Oh. It's a lot different, even though we're both canine, ne?"

"Yeah," Kouga agreed, "Anyway, that's why I'm going to mark you this way. You'll probably feel the need to bite me, since that's what dog demons do, but if you're facing away there's nowhere for you to bite."

"Okay," Inukigo replied.

Kouga reached up with both hands to undo the clasps holding her top closed, making sure that she understood what he was doing first, then pulled the material down to reveal her shoulders. He pulled her hair over the shoulder opposite of the one he was planning to bite, then bent his head down until he was almost touching her skin.

"Ready?" he asked.

Inukigo nodded and Kouga lowered his mouth to the juncture of her neck and shoulder. He began licking then sucking the flesh into his mouth, then when Inukigo whimpered he began to slowly sink in his fangs. She stiffened in his arms for a moment, but relaxed again when his teeth were as deep as they could go. He noticed that Inukigo was panting lightly, and experimentally sucked while his fangs were still embedded in her shoulder. She gave a harsh cry as her head fell back and her back arched away from him. He repeated the action a few more times, and each time Inukigo's back bowed as if she were trying to press into something that wasn't there. Finally, he removed his teeth, giving the mark a quick lick as he pulled away. Inukigo released what could have been called a sob.

"I heard that marks could be really sensitive…did I really almost bring you just by sucking on it?" he asked quietly.

Inukigo could only nod and try to catch her breath.

"You okay?" he asked when she didn't supply him with a verbal answer.

She just nodded again.

Kouga smirked.

"What did it feel like?"

Inukigo was finally able to speak this time, though her voice was breathy.

"Like your mouth was somewhere else," she admitted.

Kouga smirk only grew.

"We'll have to do that some other time," he scented the air around them and groaned.

"Gods, that scent. You _were _really close, weren't you?"

"Yeah," she replied. She was still aching actually.

Kouga pressed his cheek against hers and there was a grin on his face.

"You want me to finish it?" he asked as one hand moved towards the apex of her thighs.

Just before it reached its destination, Inukigo reacted on instinct and before she knew it, she had a fist aiming for his face. Kouga saw it coming and managed to react quickly enough to catch it before it made contact.

"Inukigo? What the hell…?"

He was confused when he heard Inukigo whimper and quickly turned her around to face him.

"What's wrong?"

She didn't answer, and he grew concerned when fear began to cover up the scent of her arousal. He quickly grasped her face with both hands and forced her to pay attention to him.

"Inukigo!"

She seemed to jolt awake at her name and instantly realized what she had almost done.

"I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…I just-" she was almost crying when he cut her off.

"Inukigo, calm down. What's wrong? You reek of fear and you're shaking. Did I scare you?"

"No," she replied, and he loosened his grip when she tried to shake her head, "Not you…bad memories."

Kouga's eyes widened and he pulled her to his chest.

"Inukigo…were you…?" he couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"No," she responded, "But…when I was younger…there was a village where some older boys tried…" she took a shaky breath as she continued, "I don't think they would have really done anything, since I'm a hanyou, but…they touched me…and I couldn't do anything before that because the villagers were looking for an excuse to attack us. As it was, Inuyasha and I had to take off after that."

Kouga nodded as she finished, running a hand through her hair to offer comfort.

"I'm sorry I tried to hit you. You just surprised me-"

"It's alright," Kouga replied, "I should have asked first anyway. But you know…I won't hurt you."

"I know," she said, nodding against his chest.

Kouga took a breath and was relieved that the scent of her fear was dissipating. But her arousal was still fairly strong, now that the fear wasn't covering it up. He was sure that she must have been aching with it.

"Will you let me try again?" he asked softly.

Inukigo looked up at him reluctantly.

"I don't know…"

"I promise you that it won't hurt. Let me do this for you, please?"

Inukigo was reluctant, but after a few moments she nodded.

"Okay."

Smiling down at her, Kouga began moving her back to her previous position, saying that the angle was better for what he wanted to do. Inukigo went along with it and found herself resting against his chest once again.

"Alright, I'm going to touch you now, so just relax and it'll be fine. Keep looking at me for now, okay."

Inukigo nodded and did as she was told, keeping her eyes locked on his, even as his hand was placed between her legs again. She froze for a moment, but willed herself to stay calm.

"Good. Just keep looking at me."

She didn't get to respond this time, as Kouga began to rub her centre with his hand. The first time surprised her and she gasped, then she released a small moan as he continued the action. She barely managed to keep her eyes on him.

"Feel alright?" he asked, though his voice sounded husky.

"Yes…" she sighed.

"Lie back and don't think about anything but what I'm doing."

Inukigo gratefully rested her head back on his shoulder and closed her eyes as she let the sensations wash over her. Just when she thought she was getting used to the feelings, Kouga's mouth was on the mark again and she cried out for him. It felt like his hand was pressing harder and when she arched up his other hand found it's way inside her top, giving her something to press her breasts against.

"Kouga…"

He didn't say anything in reply, but he sucked the mark harder and since she was already so aroused to start with, that was all that was needed for her to break. The tightness that had been building in her lower abdomen let go, and she released a small scream as her back bowed as far as it could. She only remained that way for a few seconds before relaxing and slumping back against his chest. Kouga had already released the mark from his mouth and moved his hands so that they were wrapped around her waist. Funny, she didn't recall him doing that…

"Wow…that was a…a…"

"That was an orgasm. Looked like a pretty good one too. Am I right?"

"Oh yeah…" she replied.

Kouga chuckled.

"See, I told you that you'd be fine."

Inukigo nodded, and it was only then that she finally noticed the telltale bulge that was pressing against her rear and lower back. She blushed and looked up at him.

"Kouga, you…I could…if you want…"

Kouga looked at her curiously, then realized what she was getting at and smiled.

"Thanks for the offer, but I don't think you're ready to do that just yet. You were nervous enough about letting me touch you. I'm not going to make you touch me. We'll work our way up to that, okay?"

Inukigo nodded in agreement, then was surprised when Kouga stood up and pulled her up with him.

"You go clean up a bit. Shouldn't go back to the den smelling like that."

Inukigo blushed at the thought of what would happen.

"What about you?" she asked.

"I'm gonna take care of my little problem, then I'll be back to wash up myself."

He kissed her quickly on the mouth then took off into the brush, leaving Inukigo alone to dwell on what exactly had just happened between herself and her intended mate.

* * *

Yay, fluffiness! Did you think it would be that pairing? I think it should have been rather obvious as to what I was planning. A bit later than what I first intended, but not too bad. Next time I'll update Shingetsu Inc. (what possessed me to have two stories in progress at once?), and that's how I'm planning to handle updating both stories from now on. I'll just alternate which one I update.

And I must say that I was rather disappointed that only **_one _**person reviewed last time (two if you count the person who emailed me because mm . org was being a bitch). So, special thanks to Patriot1776 (ff . net) and skyangelchick (I don't know what else to call you so…), really appreciate the reviews guys.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

When Inukigo and Kouga had been gone for nearly an hour, Inuyasha began to grow impatient and started pacing in the small section of the den that his group occupied.

"What's taking so long? They should have been back by now."

"Inuyasha, calm down. I'm sure that they're fine," Kagome said calmly while reading one of her textbooks.

"I don't like her being alone with him for so long."

"I wonder what kinds of things Kouga had in mind for his private time with Inukigo that could be taking this long," Miroku said with a smile, which earned him a smack from Sango.

Miroku's perverted take on his current dilemma had Inuyasha remembering when he and Kagome had marked each other. He knew that Kouga was most likely planning on asking Inukigo to take his mark, and without warning, images came unbidden to his mind about what may be going on if she said yes. He blushed and shook his to clear the unwanted thoughts, then continued his pacing as he grew more worried.

He was almost ready to go out and look for the two of them, despite what he might walk in on, when he heard muffled voices outside the den and his sister and Kouga walked through the waterfall with smiles on their faces. Inuyasha sighed with relief from seeing his sister laughing and happy.

'_Guess Kouga didn't mess up then._'

However, he frowned when he noticed that there was no mark on Kouga's shoulder. Had he been wrong when he assumed Kouga was taking Inukigo out to ask her to be his mate? But then why was Inukigo so happy?

Kouga leaned over and whispered something in Inukigo's ear that made her blush, then he kissed her on the cheek and walked away. Inukigo watched him for a moment with a smile on her face, then decided to join her brother and their companions in their small section of the den. Her excitement was radiating from her and Inuyasha cocked an eyebrow at her as she came to a stop before him.

"What are you so happy about?"

Still smiling she began untying the clasps at the neck of her haori, then she pulled away the material to proudly show off the mark on her shoulder. Inuyasha's eyes widened and he leaned in closer to get a better look. Unfortunately, the wolf demons in the den noticed the scrutiny that he was giving to her shoulder and whispers rose up as they all looked in Inuyasha's and Inukigo's direction. The two hanyous didn't notice that the whole den was now a captive audience.

"I didn't notice a mark on Kouga when you came into the den," Inuyasha commented as he backed away a step.

Inukigo's smile fell just a little as she refastened the ties on her haori.

"Kouga explained that wolves mark a little differently than dog demons. The bite is still in the same place, but females don't mark males. For a male wolf demon to be marked anywhere, it means he took an unwilling partner. The only mark Kouga will receive from me is the final mating mark."

"Ah, I see," Inuyasha replied with a nod, "I guess that you'll be wanting to stay through tomorrow night then?"

"Yes. I want to show him. You don't mind, right?"

Inuyasha sighed and shrugged.

"Not really. This wolf stink is starting to get to me though."

Inukigo laughed and nuzzled his cheek.

"Thanks."

"Keh."

"Um…Inuyasha…" Kagome spoke up.

"What?" He asked, turning around to look at her.

Kagome simply nodded in the direction of the outer part of the den. Inuyasha looked where she was directing him and saw that they had the attention of pretty much every wolf in the den. He growled then put an arm around Inukigo's shoulders and directed her to sit with the rest of the group.

"They're already pissed off. How wonderful," Inukigo sighed as she sat down, her good mood ruined.

"Don't worry Inukigo," Sango soothed, "I'm sure that Kouga will straighten things out with them."

"It's not any of their business anyway, just ignore them sis."

Inukigo just sighed and nodded. A few moments later her ears perked up and her expression lightened as she sensed Kouga walking towards them.

"I talked to Ginta and Hakkaku," he said as he sat down, "I told them about us, and they're going to help make sure that the pack minds their own business. There'll probably be some stares, but that's only because most of them have nothing better to do. Don't let it bother you, okay?"

Inukigo nodded and gave him a small smile.

"I'll try."

"So…are you going to stay the night?" Kouga asked hopefully.

"Actually, we were planning to stay here tomorrow night as well. Is that okay?"

"Of course! You can stay as long as you want."

"Great," Inukigo replied with a smile.

'_Now all I can do is hope that tomorrow will be a very uneventful day._'

* * *

When Inukigo woke the next morning, she could already feel the changes in her body as her demon blood began to wane. Her senses were just beginning to dull and her head felt a little fuzzy as she opened her eyes to survey the den. All of the wolves were still sleeping, as were her companions. A quick glance at the opposite side of the den revealed that Kouga was still asleep as well. He had wanted her to spend the night with him, but was disappointed when she said no. She had told him that she would rather not give the rest of the wolves more to talk about, and he had given in after receiving a quick kiss goodnight. Now she was considering going over and laying down with him, but not just to make up for the night before. She had another reason as well. Just as she was about to stand up, a voice stopped her.

"Where are you going?"

Inukigo looked over at Inuyasha, who had one eye cracked open and was watching her.

"To Kouga."

"I thought you didn't want to give the wolves more to gossip about."

"I don't," she replied, then shifted closer to him so she could whisper quietly enough to make sure he was the only one who heard her, "My scent is going to start changing soon. I want to keep tonight a surprise, so if I'm around him for most of the day, he won't notice that it's changing. Plus, if he does notice, he'll probably blurt it out before he realizes what it means and the whole den will know. I'd rather they didn't."

Inuyasha nodded in understanding.

"Go on then, before he wakes up and you miss your chance."

Inukigo smiled at him, then got up and carefully began to creep across the den towards Kouga's sleeping area. She prided herself for not alerting a single wolf to her movements. Then she got down on all fours and crawled towards Kouga, who was sprawled out on his back on the large pile of straw that made up his bedding. She managed to get to his side before he finally noticed her presence, and she was tucked up against him by the time he woke up. He looked down at her with surprise.

"Inukigo? I thought…"

Inukigo held a finger to her lips as a sign for him to be quiet then whispered to him softly.

"I changed my mind. I wanted to sleep here with you for a little while. That alright?"

"Of course," he whispered back, wrapping his arms around her and turning to his side so they were face to face, "As if I would ever turn you away."

Inukigo smiled at him and tucked her head under his chin with a sigh. She had been on edge for most of the night and hadn't really even been able to doze because of the hostile surroundings. Now she could feel the tension flowing out of her body, and it seemed that Kouga could feel her relax as well.

"Are you nervous because of my pack?"

"A little," she admitted, "It just puts me on edge to be around so many people that hate me. I've always been this way, can't really help it."

She felt Kouga nod against her head.

"Go on to sleep. We've got a little while before the pack wakes up."

Inukigo sighed gratefully and within moments she was gone.

* * *

Much to Inukigo's delight, the day was rather uneventful. Aside from the moment of awkwardness when the pack began to rise and saw herself and Kouga sleeping together on his bedding, the day went rather smoothly. All of the wolves took Kouga's warnings to heart and managed to keep their opinions of Inukigo to themselves.

Inukigo carried on with her plan to stay near Kouga for the entire day, and it seemed to work because if he did notice any change in her scent as the day wore on he made no indication of it. She felt a little badly for making Inuyasha and the rest of her companions stay an extra day because they all seemed to be pretty bored. Inuyasha was the worst of them, because while the others found ways to pass the time, he just brooded and Inukigo could tell he working very hard to keep from complaining about his situation.

So all in all, the day was peaceful for the most part. But that changed as evening drew near. It was just a few hours before sunset when a howl sounded from the forest that even Inukigo could pick up on with her muted hearing. Everyone was sitting outside, and Kouga began growling beside her.

"What is it?"

"Shit," was all he said as he stood up and began walking in the direction of the forest.

All of the other wolves seemed to be very interested in the howl as well and were all coming out to gather in front of the den. Inukigo wasn't sure that she liked what this could mean and got up to follow after Kouga.

"Ooi, Kouga, what's wrong?"

Kouga turned to look at her with a frown on his face.

"That howl was a signal from another pack to let us know that they're approaching. Problem is, I recognize the howl, and it could mean trouble."

Inukigo looked at him in confusion.

"Why? Who is it?"

Just as he was about to answer when the pack in question exited the forest, led by a she-wolf dressed in white fur. Kouga sighed in frustration.

"Ayame."

"Ayame?" she questioned, confused by the tone of his voice.

The red-headed wolf demon strode towards them with conviction, a frown apparent on her face as she drew closer. When she stopped directly before the two of them, Inukigo thought that she looked almost disgusted.

Kagome, Inuyasha, and the others looked at each other with worry, because they were well aware of Ayame's feelings for Kouga, and knew that this could be trouble.

"So it's true."

Kouga regarded Ayame suspiciously.

"What's true?"

"Before dawn, one of your pack members arrived at the Elders' den. He said he had run all through the day and night to bring them some very valuable information," as she spoke, Ayame stared at Inukigo but her words were meant for Kouga, "To him it had appeared that you had become fond of a half dog demon woman. He said that she arrived at the den, and was very forward with you, yet you made no actions to discourage her. I see that his words were true."

Kouga was seething.

"Who was it!" he growled, "Who dared! That was **_my _**news to give to the Elders when **_I _**was ready."

"And when would you have told them? After you took her for your mate?" Kouga simply growled at her words, "The wolf who brought us the news is now under the protection of the Elders. After giving us his message, he feared your wrath."

"He was right to," Kouga growled under his breath.

"Kouga?" Inukigo asked softly, laying a hand on his arm, "What's all this about?"

Kouga sighed as he tried to calm himself.

"The Tribe Elders that govern over this pack have a certain say in everything. They can't make orders relating to my personal life, like forbid me to be with you, but they can complain and make threats. I wanted to tell them about this in person so I could be there to defend my decision to court you. Looks like that won't be happening."

"Make threats? On you?" Inukigo asked with concern.

Kouga shook his head.

"I'm what they would call a valuable tribe member, they wouldn't do anything to me. They'd threaten you, hoping to get me to rethink my decision."

Inukigo's eyes widened.

"That's right," Ayame spoke up, "The Elders have already ordered that you meet with them immediately to discuss this issue. As for you," she declared, pointing at Inukigo, "I challenge you for rite of courtship."

Inukigo stared at the red haired girl in shock.

"Me?" she looked to Kouga for an explanation.

Kouga looked away uncomfortably.

"It's a part of wolf demon courtship. Males can court more than one female, so the females can challenge each other for the right to be courted."

Inukigo's eyes widened and she wanted to say, 'But you've already marked me,' but she held it in. Kouga hadn't mentioned that he'd marked her to Ayame, so it was possible he didn't want the she-wolf to know.

'_I'll ask him about it later._'

"So what does that mean? If I lose then you can't court me?"

"No, the decision is ultimately mine. But it's meant as a chance for the challenging female to gain the favour of the male by displaying her strength. Even if Ayame were to win, it doesn't mean that I would give up on courting you."

"Then what does she have to gain from this?" Inukigo asked, though she was looking at Ayame.

"If you decline, then you would be declared a coward and expected to back off. And it's not very common, but these fights can be to the death."

Inukigo heard shocked noises from her companions but kept her attention on Ayame.

"Is that it? You think you can kill me?"

Ayame didn't reply, but her silence was answer enough.

"Kouga, would Ayame be considered the strongest female in your tribe?" she asked.

Kouga had to think about it for a moment, then nodded.

"Yeah, she would be. Why?"

"If I defeated the strongest female of the tribe in a challenge, that would earn me the respect of your pack, right?"

"Yeah, it should," Kouga replied, catching on to what she was thinking, "I'll make sure it does anyway."

"So what do I have to do to win this challenge?"

"You need to either make her submit, make it clear to everyone present that there is no chance of her winning, or kill her, if it comes to that."

Inukigo nodded and cracked her knuckles.

"Alright then Ayame, I accept your challenge. I'm ready whenever you are."

The she-wolf took her proclamation very literally, seeing as she jumped at Inukigo as soon as the words of acceptance were out of her mouth. Inukigo's eyes widened as she sidestepped the angry woman and moved to put some distance between them. Ayame didn't let her get far and began charging at Inukigo relentlessly, forcing their audience to move back and give the two women a wide berth.

Inukigo doubted that she would be able to make Ayame submit, seeing as the wolf demon was very determined to win this challenge. So her only options were to prove that she was the stronger female, or kill Ayame.

She had to admit that the she-wolf was fast; she was having a difficult time dodging all of Ayame's attacks.

'_But that's because I'll be human in a few hours. Of all the times for this to happen…_'

Kouga seemed to notice Inukigo's difficulty as well and moved to stand beside Inuyasha and Kagome.

"Is something wrong with Inukigo? I know she's faster than this, so why does it look like Ayame is giving her such a hard time?"

Inuyasha and Kagome knew exactly what was wrong, but neither of them revealed the information. Inukigo wanted it to be a surprise and they weren't going to spoil it for her.

"I don't know. Maybe she's taking it easy on her," Inuyasha lied.

Kouga didn't say anything but seemed to accepted the explanation as he continued to watch the two females fighting.

To her credit, Inukigo was staying ahead of Ayame rather well, despite the weakening of her normal abilities. She knew that she was going to have to think of something soon though; her stamina was not up to par and she knew that she would tire out before the full demon she was facing. But she could also tell that Ayame was getting frustrated, and there would be an opening eventually.

It came when Ayame charged while off balance after she had landed sloppily on her last run and hadn't bothered to correct herself. Inukigo was able to grab Ayame's hands and grappled with the wolf demon, glad to see that her strength wasn't gone just yet.

Ayame snarled as Inukigo twisted her arms behind her back and shoved her to the ground with a knee at the small of her back. Ayame struggled, but Inukigo was able to hold on for the time being.

"Give up, Ayame. It'll be less painful."

"Never!" Ayame growled, "Kouga is _mine_! He promised me!"

Inukigo's eyes widened at the declaration and her gaze locked onto Kouga's equally shocked expression. Her distraction gave Ayame the opening to break free and throw her off, sending Inukigo across the ground and leaving her a bit disoriented. Ayame was up quickly and on top of Inukigo with her fist closed around the hanyou's throat. Inukigo choked as she clawed at the hand around her neck, but Ayame was livid and would not budge.

"He promised that he would make me his mate long before he ever met you, so what makes you think you even have a chance!"

Inukigo was growing light-headed from the lack of oxygen and was starting to see black spots in her vision.

"That's fucking bullshit Ayame!" she heard Kouga yell in her hazy mind.

"No it isn't! You told me that night on the mountain that you would one day make me your mate."

"You were a fucking whelp! Whatever promise you think I made isn't worth shit! I would never have meant it!"

Ayame's eyes burned and she turned back to Inukigo and applied more pressure on the hanyou's windpipe.

Inukigo forced herself to pull it together. No way was this emotionally unstable wolf going to kill her. And she was curious to hear Kouga's explanation for Ayame's accusations. Letting go of the hand at her throat, Inukigo balled her fist as tightly as she could and punched Ayame's side for all she was worth. The she-wolf gasped as the wind was knocked out of her and her hold on Inukigo's neck loosened, allowing the hanyou to take a well-needed lungful of air. She then growled and grabbed Ayame, throwing the other woman off of her. She shook her head to clear it as she got to her feet, and continued growling as she watched Ayame sit up and clutch her side.

"This is pointless. Submit now before I'm really forced to hurt you."

Ayame didn't heed the warning and jumped up to run at Inukigo again. Inukigo was quickly becoming irritated with Ayame's stubbornness and grabbed the redhead's forearms as she ran past and swung her around before slamming her into the ground.

'_Thank the gods the strength is the last thing to go…though I am lucky that she's not so great at keeping her focus._'

Ayame groaned as she saw stars, having almost passed up from the last hit. Before she could get up, Inukigo had her foot pressed against Ayame's neck and was glaring down at her disdainfully.

"You won't win. Just stop before I hurt you."

Ayame ignored the words, then grabbed Inukigo's leg, digging her claws deep into the muscle. Inukigo didn't flinch, nor did she move as she continued to apply more pressure to the wolf youkai's windpipe.

"I don't want to kill you, but I have no problems doing it if you force me. Submit."

Ayame shook her head and her grip tightened to the point where Inukigo grimaced in pain, though she made it look like irritation.

'_I have to be careful or she's going to rip the muscle out. That's not something I'll be able to heal in a few hours. But I can't just pull her off now either, she's got her claws in too deep._'

Frowning, she eased up on Ayame's neck a fraction, and like she hoped the demoness thought she was weakening and relaxed her grip in response. Before Ayame had the chance to fight back, Inukigo jerked her leg away and grabbed Ayame's hair and threw her down face first, then pulled her arms back painfully and pinned her to the ground. Ayame could barely struggle, let alone move in the position Inukigo had her in.

"Submit, damn it. I'm growing tired of this bullshit," Inukigo snarled over the other woman's head.

"Never," Ayame growled.

Inukigo growled back, her frustration very apparent. She wanted this over now so she could give her leg time to heal before she turned human. That was when Kouga's voice was heard from the sidelines.

"Is there any doubt in the minds of all those who witness this challenge that Inukigo should not be declared the victor?"

Inukigo looked up in his direction, and finally took notice of all the wolf demons surrounding them. She was surprised that they had such an audience, but what was even more surprising was that every one of them remained silent. Not a whisper was heard through the crowd in response to Kouga's question. She looked back at her intended mate and saw a very proud smirk on his face.

"There are no objections, so I declare Inukigo the winner. You can let her up now, it's over."

Inukigo breathed a sigh of relief and slowly got off Ayame's back. Her leg was throbbing and bleeding freely, but other than that she was fine. She took a few steps toward Kouga with her back to Ayame, when he began to growl in warning.

"I wouldn't try that if I were you Ayame. If you take a swipe at her outside of a challenge, then it's anyone's place to step in and stop you, including mine. You would be smart to reconsider."

Inukigo stopped and looked over her shoulder and saw that Ayame was up and poised to jump at her back.

"Don't you know when to quit?" she asked with a frown.

Apparently the answer was no because Ayame ignored Kouga's warning and jumped at Inukigo's back anyway. The hanyou woman was finished trying not to hurt her too badly and easily punched Ayame in the jaw, seeing as how she was recklessly flying straight at her. Inukigo cracked her knuckles as she watched Ayame land at the feet of her escorts, then continued walking toward Kouga. When she reached his side she turned to watch Ayame with the rest of the pack.

"I suggest you leave Ayame. You have worn out your welcome," Kouga said coldly, "Tell the Elders that I will meet with them and that I will be leaving tomorrow."

The red headed wolf demon got to her feet and frowned.

"You'll be sorry for this. They'll never let him mark and mate you."

Inukigo's expression hardened.

"We'll see."

With one last growl, Ayame turned towards the forest and ran off with her small entourage. Kouga wrapped an arm around Inukigo's shoulder and gave her a smug grin.

"That was great, though you did worry me for a few minutes," then he lowered his voice to keep the pack from hearing, "How's your leg?"

"Still bleeding," she whispered back, "Don't go fussing over me just yet though. It'll ruin the image if I need to be tended to right away."

Kouga nodded in understanding and gave her shoulder a squeeze, then released her as Inuyasha and the rest of her companions stepped forward to see if she was alright. In the mean time, Kouga addressed his pack.

"After that display, I believe that there should be no further remarks about Inukigo's worthiness to be at my side. Am I right?"

Inukigo was startled when the wolves actually cheered **_for _**her instead of voicing their disapproval. She thought she even heard a few of them call her 'nee-san'. Kouga didn't look to gauge her reaction and kept talking.

"I know that all of you are aware that I have marked Inukigo already. The Elders have no knowledge of this right now, and I want to keep it that way until I am ready to tell them myself. I trust that all of you will make sure that this information does not leave this den."

All of the wolves responded affirmatively and Kouga turned to give her a wide smile. She returned it, then was surprised again by the suggestion that started spreading throughout the pack.

"Come celebrate with us nee-san!"

"Yes, we must celebrate your acceptance into the pack!"

Kouga was still smiling, but Inukigo's eyes widened in panic.

'_I can't stay and celebrate with them! I'll be human! What should I do…I can't let all of them find out…_'

A quick glance at her brother and companions showed that they were thinking the same thing she was. She laughed nervously and tried to get herself out of it.

"That isn't really necessary…I'm grateful for all of your acceptance, but you really don't have to throw a celebration for me."

"Nonsense!" One of them shouted out, "It's tradition! You must celebrate with us!"

Inukigo was at a loss. She really didn't want the entire wolf pack knowing about her human night. Kouga noticed her distress and stepped in front of her with a concerned frown on his face.

"What's wrong?"

She sighed as she answered him.

"Nothing…but I really kind of wanted to have a quiet evening so I could relax a bit…"

"C'mon, it'll be fun. Besides, they'll probably be offended if you turn them down."

"Really?" she asked, chewing on her lip when he nodded.

'_Guess I don't really have any other choice…_'

She took Kouga's hand and pulled him away from the rest of the pack, limping as she went, and made sure that they were far enough so that they wouldn't be overheard.

"Looks like she's going to tell him outright," Inuyasha commented.

"Yeah. She needed a way to explain why she doesn't really want to celebrate with the wolves," Kagome added.

"There goes her surprise, too bad," Shippou piped up from Kagome's shoulder.

"Now I know something's wrong," Kouga said when Inukigo stopped pulling him, "What's up?"

"There's really no way I could get out of celebrating with the wolves without upsetting them?"

"Well, maybe. If I'm the one who gives them a reason. Why are you so set against it?"

"Normally I wouldn't be," she tried to explain, worrying her lip again. Kouga would have said that she looked cute if it wouldn't for the fact that he knew she was distressed, "Tonight…tonight I'll be human…and I don't really want the entire pack to know that the night of the full moon is my time of weakness."

Kouga's eyebrows shot up at her news.

"Tonight is when you turn human?"

Inukigo nodded.

"I was going to surprise you later…"

"Thank you for telling me," he replied, nuzzling the side of her face, "I know it's something hanyous prefer to hide. Your brother was pissed when I found out his-"

Inukigo pulled away with wide eyes.

"You know when my brother turns human?"

"Yes, but that's besides the point. I'll get you out of the celebration, but you don't have to hide it from the pack. They consider you one of their own now, they won't use it against you or let outsiders know. You're safe with them."

Inukigo eyed him sceptically.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. I trust my pack, and if they're treating you as pack sister, then you really have nothing to worry about. You're the only female, so all the attention will be on you. It'll be like having a pack of overprotective brothers."

"Really? Wow…and I thought one was a lot. You're sure that's how they'd react?

Kouga nodded. Inukigo took a deep breath but shook her head.

"I can't do it. I believe you, but I just can't reveal that to them. Not yet."

Kouga pulled her into a hug and rested his head on top of hers.

"It's okay. It must be hard revealing it to anyone after having to hide it for so long."

Inukigo nodded, the pulled away with a small smile and led him back to the rest of the group, standing by his side as he addressed the pack.

"Sorry guys, but the celebration will have to wait. I want to take a look at Inukigo's leg and let her get some rest," a chorus of groans rose up from the small crowd, "Enough of that. We can celebrate tomorrow morning, and if you can't wait then celebrate tonight in her name. I'm taking her out to one of the smaller caves for the night."

"All of you, thank you so much. I really appreciate it. And I'll definitely party with you tomorrow morning, so don't have too much fun without me."

The wolves cheered and laughed as Inukigo turned to Kouga and smiled at him.

"Thanks."

"No problem," he replied, "We should probably get going now. I do really want to get a look at your leg. From the amount of blood you're trailing around, those wounds must be deep."

Inukigo looked down and saw that she had indeed been leaving a trail of blood behind her. Inuyasha and her companions moved towards them and her brother looked concerned.

"Can you keep walking on that leg?"

After carefully putting weight on her injured limb Inukigo found that it did still hurt, which meant that the injury itself was probably pretty serious, but she could manage for now.

"As long as I don't have to run on it, I'm good," she replied, then she looked up at her brother and intended mate, "Don't either one of you even consider carrying me in front of the entire pack. I just earned their respect, I'd rather not lose it by appearing weak."

Both males sighed and nodded, knowing that it was pointless to try to argue with her.

"How far are these caves, Kouga?" Inuyasha asked.

"Not too far. We'll get there with plenty of time before sunset."

Inukigo inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

'_Plenty of time to get myself healed up a bit._'

"Let's get going then."

Everyone agreed and the group moved off, following Kouga to the caves he had been talking about. Much to Inukigo's dismay, as soon as they were out of sight Kouga came back and swung her up into his arms. He calmly reminded her that she hadn't said anything about carrying her while they weren't in front of the pack.

* * *

"Alright, let's have a look at that leg."

Inukigo sighed in irritation and rolled her eyes as Kouga picked up her foot and began removing her boot. As soon as they had entered the cave and gotten settled, he had sat her down against a wall and started fussing.

She watched as he got the boot off, then carefully untied the string that kept her hakama bunched at her ankle. Once that was done, he took great care in rolling back the torn and bloodied cloth so he could get a look at the injuries on her leg.

"Shit," he cursed when he finally got a clear look at it, "What a mess."

Inukigo, as well as the rest of the group, were inclined to agree with him. Ayame really had made a mess of her lower leg. What would have been deep puncture wounds had become gashes when Inukigo had jerked her leg away from Ayame's hold. There was one for each of Ayame's fingers, and there was definitely muscle damage. It was a wonder she could walk.

"Here, Kouga," Kagome said as she handed the wolf youkai a bowl of water and a cloth. She was quickly learning that intended mates preferred to take care of each other without much outside interference. She was sure that the same was true for fully mated pairs as well.

Kouga accepted the water with a 'thanks' then began to carefully wipe the blood from Inukigo's leg. She flinched but didn't voice her discomfort. It took a few minutes for Kouga to finish at the pace he was going, and when he was done the water in the bowl was pink. He gently lifted her foot again, propping it up against his chest so he could get a good look at her leg.

"You're still bleeding," he commented as he watched the blood slowly pool in the gashes, "These won't be closed by the time the sun sets if they're left alone."

She was just about to suggest he get some bandages from Kagome, when he moved her foot again, this time to his shoulder, and lowered his face to one of the deeper claw marks. Inukigo winced when his tongue began probing at the wound, but flushed in embarrassment despite the slight pain. While the demon part of her brain - which was for the most part dominant - rationalized that what Kouga was doing was perfectly normal, the part of her brain that was human whispered that her friends were watching something that it considered a little strange and vaguely intimate. She knew that it wasn't, because normally Inuyasha was the one who tended to her injuries by doing the exact same thing. Regardless of what her demonic instincts told her, her face still burned with embarrassment.

Looking up, she saw that the humans of the group were watching curiously, while the demons didn't really pay any attention to what was going on. Kagome especially looked like she really wanted to ask about what was going on, but she probably thought that she'd be interrupting. Inukigo managed to put aside her embarrassment and tried focusing on explaining what was going on to her friends.

"The saliva of some species of demons have healing properties. Canine is one of the strongest."

"So, Kouga is healing your leg by licking it like that?" Kagome asked in astonishment.

Kouga was completely ignoring the conversation and continued focusing on his task.

"Not completely, but enough for now," Inukigo replied, "Our saliva works best at quickly closing open wounds, not healing them fully. Basically, once the wound is closed the saliva can't get past the skin so it loses its effect."

"Does it hurt when he does that?" Sango asked.

"Not really. It does a little at first, but after awhile it starts to feel a lot better."

"Remarkable," Miroku commented, "Why is it we've never heard of this ability before?" He asked, looking at Inuyasha.

The hanyou blushed and growled.

"Keh. It's not something that humans would really understand. Besides, it's more of a family thing. Only mates, intended mates, and immediate family do it. And no way in hell am I ever licking your wounds anyway!"

"No, perhaps you wouldn't. But now that Inukigo is with us maybe-"

"Not a chance Miroku," Inukigo cut in quickly, frowning darkly at the monk.

Miroku laughed nervously and sighed.

"Never mind then."

Inukigo rolled her eyes, then closed them as she sat back against the wall of the cave and tried to relax. She listened as Kagome and Sango started preparing a meal for all of them, and smiled when she heard Inuyasha complaining about being bored. She didn't even register Kouga licking her wounds until he stopped a short time later. Opening her eyes, she watched as he looked over his handiwork.

"That's the best I can do," he commented as he glanced up at her.

Her leg wasn't bleeding anymore, but it was still torn up pretty badly. Then she met Kouga's eyes and blushed when she saw the look he was giving her through hazy, half-lidded eyes.

'_Well, he did just get a good amount of my blood._'

"Get some ointment and bandages from Kagome. That'll do for tonight."

Kouga nodded and was about to get up when Kagome appeared with the aforementioned items.

"I saw that you were finished and thought that you might want these. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."

Kouga thanked her once again, then opened the jar of ointment and began to carefully spread it on Inukigo's wounds. She winced slightly but the pain wasn't nearly as bad as it had been before. By the time he had started wrapping the bandage around her leg she was accustomed to it and it didn't bother her anymore.

'_But it will as soon as I turn human…damn._'

Just as he declared he was done, Kagome called them over for dinner and Kouga picked her up so they could both sit over with the group. She was only partway through her meal when she paused and lay down her bowl. Kouga looked at her with concern.

"Inukigo?"

"Sun's going down," she replied casually, then her body shimmered as the transformation started. Her hair bled to black and her ears shifted down her head until they were positioned as normal human ears. Her claws and fangs became blunt and shortened, and when she opened her eyes they were a deep brown. She released a deep breath that she had been holding and was happy to find that her leg didn't bother her too much at all. It was throbbing but it was tolerable. Inukigo then looked up at Kouga's face to see his reaction.

His eyes were wide open and he was staring at her intently. The cave suddenly got very quiet and if her ears had still been on top of her head Inukigo would have been flattening them to her skull in response to his scrutiny. She held her breath as he reached back and untied her - now black - hair and ran his hand through it before tucking it behind one of her human ears. He then gently grasped her chin so he could keep her head still as he looked at her eyes.

"You still look like you…but you don't look like you," he frowned as his words contradicted each other, "I mean, your face looks the same, but your hair and eye colours are so different. Not to mention your ears."

"Fangs and claws are gone too," she reminded.

Kouga nodded, then tilted her face from side to side as if he were appraising her.

"It'll do, I suppose," he commented lightly, then his face split into a sly smirk, "Though I'd have to see if any of your parts are affected by the transformation…" he said leadingly, then unabashedly looked down at her breasts so she knew exactly what he was referring to.

Everyone sputtered at his forwardness, then began laughing uncontrollably, except for Inuyasha, Inukigo and Shippou. Shippou because he was really too young to grasp what Kouga was insinuating, Inuyasha was pissed because he was reminded that the wolf had seen Inukigo's chest and was now commenting on it, and Inukigo blushed bright red in her embarrassment.

She huffed and picked up her bowl, determined to continue eating and appear as though his comment had no effect on her whatsoever, but the colour of her face gave her away easily. Kouga chuckled and kissed her on the temple, then went back to eating his own meal.

A few hours later, everyone decided that they'd had enough excitement for one day and started getting ready for bed. Sango and Miroku had already settled down for the night, and Kirara had conveniently placed herself between the two, intending on protecting her mistress. Shippou had taken up sleeping with Kirara, saying that Kagome and Inuyasha had gotten too mushy for his tastes. Kagome had gotten her sleeping bag out and was going about her nightly rituals while Inuyasha watched. Inukigo and Kouga sat together against the wall of the cave, Inukigo having already expressed her desire to not go to sleep, much to Kouga's displeasure.

She was currently massaging her injured leg, just below her knee. The throbbing from earlier had become more pronounced and was a bit less tolerable than it had been before. Kouga opened his eyes and noticed what she was doing.

"Hey, does your leg hurt?"

"A little," she admitted, keeping her eyes closed, "It just aches a bit."

Kouga reached over and took her hand away from her leg, then grabbed her thigh and turned her sideways so she was still reclining against the wall, but now her legs rested across his lap. One of his arms wrapped around her waist to pull her closer to his body, and the other went to massaging her sore leg like she had been doing. Inukigo sighed once she was settled and rested her head against his shoulder.

"You know, if you went to sleep then you wouldn't even feel it," he said lightly.

Inukigo frowned.

"No."

Kouga sighed and began toying with her hair with the hand that was at her waist.

"You're so stubborn."

"I've been telling her that for years," Inuyasha commented.

Unable to growl, Inukigo settled for sticking her tongue out at him.

"You're one to talk," she pouted.

"So how do you deal with her?" Kouga asked.

"Keh, I know a way to get her to sleep, but she's all cuddled up against you now so there's nothing I can do."

"How?"

Inukigo tensed, hoping that Inuyasha wouldn't tell, but Kagome beat him to it.

"He makes this rumbling sound in his chest. Like a really soft growl."

Inuyasha was grateful that she didn't use the word 'purr' to describe it.

"I don't know if I can do that," Kouga said with a frown, "I've never tried."

Inukigo breathed a sigh of relief and Kouga directed his frown at her.

"Don't think you're getting off easy. I'll find some way to get you to sleep."

"I could give her pain relievers. Those made her sleepy last time," Kagome offered.

"No way!" Inukigo protested, "You are not getting me to take those little white pills ever again."

Kouga didn't really know what they were talking about, but that didn't stop him.

"Hey, Kagome, give me some of those pain reliever things."

Inukigo's eyes widened and she tried to crawl out of his arms.

"No! I don't want them!"

Kouga's grip tightened, and he had no trouble holding onto her since she was human. He took the pills from Kagome, as well as the cup of water she brought with them. Instead of forcing Inukigo to take them like everyone thought he would, he simply popped them into his own mouth and followed them up with a huge mouthful of water. Inukigo was so confused by his actions that she stopped struggling completely and was totally unprepared when his mouth crashed into hers and his tongue was prying her lips open. She didn't give much resistance, and as soon as he had her mouth open he forced the pills and water that were in his mouth into hers. She was so startled that she could do nothing but swallow, and it wasn't until she had it all down that she realized what he had done. And she certainly wasn't happy about it.

"You bastard! What'd ya do that for!"

She smacked him on the arm and tried to get away again, but Kouga simply rolled his eyes and held on.

"Calm down. It's done now so there's nothing you can do about it."

Inukigo huffed and crossed her arms, but did as he said.

"Fine. But I think I deserve to have some questions answered for that trick."

Kouga wasn't sure he liked that idea, but agreed that it was fair given what he had just done.

"Go ahead."

"Alright. What made Ayame so sure that you would choose her as your mate? She said something about you making her a promise."

"She keeps saying that I made her that promise while she was training up in the mountains. I can't remember doing it, but even if I did I know that I wouldn't have meant it. She would have only been a little whelp back then, and there's no way that I would ever made that kind of promise to a kid. Maybe I said it to keep her spirits up, I don't know."

"Conceited," Inukigo drawled with a smirk, "Thinking a promise like that can take all of a girl's worries away."

"Hey, it took away a lot of your worries didn't it?" He shot back.

Inukigo didn't deny it and kept the smile on her face.

"She was so stubborn. I was worried that I was really going to have to hurt her. I was wondering why you didn't just tell her about the mark until you told the pack to keep quiet. I could have avoided all that trouble."

"Um, actually, no you couldn't," Kouga said uneasily.

"Why not? You've marked me so that takes away the chance for competition, right?"

"There's another reason why male wolves aren't marked before the mating ritual," he said, not meeting her eyes.

"Huh?"

"Like I said during your fight with Ayame, male wolves can court more than one female at a time. That includes marking more than one female at a time. Letting Ayame know I had marked up wouldn't have made a difference, except that the Elders would find out and there could be a lot of trouble."

He still wouldn't look at her and Inukigo's eyes widened.

"You…can mark more that one female?"

"Yeah, but not take more than one mark. That's the other reason that I won't receive one until the mating ritual."

"O-oh," she replied quietly.

Inuyasha, Kagome, and the others watched silently as the waited for Kouga's reply.

"I would never court a second female, Inukigo," Kouga said softly, "I just thought I should tell you before you heard it somewhere else and started doubting me. I was surprised that Ayame didn't say anything about it."

"You…really won't court anyone else? I know that wolf demons can…rut without being mated. You know that you can't have that with me."

"Is this really a conversation you should be having in front of an audience?" Inuyasha asked with a scowl.

Inukigo ducked her head, having forgotten that they were listening. Kouga just returned the look and ignored him.

"Of course I know that. Believe me, I've gone a very long time without sex, I can wait until we become mates."

Inuyasha snorted and Kouga glared darkly at him.

"Contrary to popular belief, many wolves choose to be monogamous and to court only the female they want for their mate. We don't just go and rut with any willing female just because we can."

Inuyasha blushed and looked away.

"Keh!"

"Inuyasha, leave your sister alone and get over here," Kagome said from where she was sitting on her sleeping bag, "Or I'll say it."

"Kagome…" Inuyasha growled.

"I-will-say-it."

Inuyasha growled and levelled Kouga with one more glare, then did as he was told before Kagome pounded him into the ground. Inukigo sent Kagome a grateful smile, glad someone had gotten Inuyasha to leave them alone for a little while, because she wasn't up to telling him to back off herself. Kagome returned the smile, then went about the task of convincing Inuyasha that they were safe enough for him to share the sleeping bag with her.

Inukigo sighed, then grimaced. Her leg was starting to feel better, that meant the pills were working and she would be getting sleepy soon.

"I'm still mad at you," she grumbled against Kouga's shoulder.

"Oh?" Kouga asked softly, a small smirk on his face.

"Un. You're going to be sorry to playing that trick on me. Someday when you least expect it, I'm gonna get you back."

Kouga could hear sleep creeping into her voice and her breath evening out.

"I'll be looking forward to it."

Inukigo didn't hear him, because she was already fast asleep.

* * *

Holy crap…this took a lot longer than I first anticipated. Sorry it took me such a long time, hopefully the next one will be out much faster - crosses fingers - Thanks for the reviews guys and girls, and hopefully mm . org will allow reviews this time around - rolls eyes - 


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